The Library of Vito Volterra (1860-1940):

Scientist, policy maker and bibliophile

by Giovanni Paoloni, Università La Sapienza, Rome

Vito Volterra is generally considered one of the greatest mathematicians of his time: “His most important contributions were in higher analysis, mathematical physics, celestial mechanics, the mathematical theory of elasticity and mathematical biometrics. His major works in these fields included the foundation of the theory of functionals and the solution of the type of integral equations with variable limits that now bear his name, methods of integrating hyperbolic partial differential equations, the study of hereditary phenomena, optics of birifrangent media, the motion of the earth's poles and, in his last years, placing the laws of biological fluctuations on mathematical bases and establishing principles of a demographic dynamics that present analogies to the dynamics of material systems ” ( Dictionary of Scientific Biography). He was born in Ancona in 1860, and began his academic career as early as 1883, becoming full professor of Mechanics in the University of Pisa when he was only 23. In 1893 he moved to the University of Turin; in 1894 was elected a member of the Societ à Italiana delle Scienze, detta dei XL, in 1895 member of the Accademia delle Scienze di Torino, and in 1899 member of the most influential body of Italian academy, the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei.

In 1900 he moved again, to teach Mathematical Physics in Rome, where he was to become for twelve years (1907-1919) the dean of the Faculty of Mathematical, Physical and Natural Sciences. In 1901 he inaugurated the new academic year with the lecture “Sui tentativi di applicazione delle matematiche alle scienze biologiche e sociali ”, showing a great interest for the applications of mathematics to the biological sciences and to the social and economic research. After 1900 his growing interest (both scientific and practical) for the relationship between scientific research and economic and social development, put him in touch with the new technocratic milieu emerging in Rome, under the political leadership of Giovanni Giolitti and Francesco Saverio Nitti, during the period usually described as the years of “industrial take-off”. In 1905 he became Senator, which represented a consecration of his new role as policy maker in the field of scientific research; in 1906 he promoted the creation of the Societ à Italiana per il Progresso delle Scienze (Association for the Advancement of Science), soon to become the most influential organization of the Italian scientific community in the first three decades of the 20th century; in 1912 he became president of the newly established Comitato Talassografico Italiano, a national and international endeavor for marine research in the Mediterranean Sea. He was also involved in the establishment of the national network for meteorology, and in the early stages of the Italian aeronautics.

In 1914-1915 Volterra was very active in the Italian political debate on the European War. He was against the neutrality proclaimed at the outburst of the War, and in favor of an alliance with the French-British Entente against the Central Empires. When Italy broke its neutrality in 1915, May 24th, he entered the Army as volunteer in the Air Force, and was immediately involved in scientific and technical inter-allied cooperation. In 1917 he was appointed director of the Ufficio Invenzioni e Ricerche, from which the Italian National Research Council was to develop after the War, and in 1918-1919 he worked with the American astronomer George E. Hale, the British Arthur Schuster and the Belgian Georges Lecointe in the foundation of the International Research Council (later International Council of Scientific Unions). In 1920 he was elected president of the Societ à Italiana delle Scienze detta dei XL, in 1921 president of the Bureau International de Poids et M ésures and in 1923 president of the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei.

Volterra, though he never published on the subject, was very interested in the history of science: in 1903, when the International Congress of Historical Sciences was held in Rome, he chaired the organizing committee of the section on history of science, and he always tried (unsuccessfully) to gain institutional and academic support for the discipline. He was involved in all the important institutional publishing of the works of great Italian scientists of the past, from Leonardo to Galileo, Torricelli and Volta. He was himself a bibliophile, and during his life built a collection of ancient science books which is now considered among the most important of the world; he frequently traveled to Paris, because of his academic and institutional role, and in Paris he used to spend many hours with antiquarian booksellers, mostly bouquinistes along the Seine: there he bought the best part of his collection. The collection is presently a part of the Burndy Library at the Dibner Institute, and it consists of three different groups of books: the professional library of Volterra himself, the collection of ancient books and the collection of offprints sent by colleagues from all over the world; on the whole, over 8.000 books and 17.000 offprints.

Volterra had never liked Mussolini’s government. In a letter of 1922 to a French friend he expressed his “concern” for the political situation in Italy, but, like many other members of the liberal establishment, he did not question, at first, the legitimacy of a government appointed by the King. He simply continued the activities connected with his important institutional position, and kept cooperating, when necessary, with governmental bodies. Things began to change in 1924, when the “Matteotti affair” demonstrated the true nature of Fascism and precipitated the gradual transformation of the Mussolini government in plain dictatorship. Under these circumstances Volterra, who had been in 1923 an open opponent of the Educational Reform promoted by Giovanni Gentile, in October 1924 joined the Unione delle forze liberali e democratiche led by Giovanni Amendola, in 1925 signed the Manifesto degli intellettuali antifascisti proposed by Benedetto Croce, and soon after joined the group of anti-fascist Senators, the only legal group of opponents that Mussolini was forced to tolerate since he could not dissolve the Senate (composed of life-lasting members appointed by the King) as he had done with the other branch of the Parliament. In 1931 the university professors were ordered an oath of fidelity to the fascist government: by refusing it Volterra lost his academic position, and was forced to retire (only 12 university professors refused the oath); the story repeated in 1934, with a similar oath being imposed on the members of academies and science institutions: at this time, Volterra ceased to be a member of the Lincei. In 1938, being Jew, he was victim with his family of the racial laws, though, as a Senator, he was partially safeguarded against the worst aspects of anti-Semitic legislation. Volterra reacted with exceptional vitality to this situation: he kept going on with his scientific activity and kept alive his extraordinary network of relations, in Italy and abroad. He died in 1940, at the age of 80, a few months after Italy had entered WWII.





Image: Archivio Storico di San Miniato

	The Library of Vito Volterra (1860-1940): Scientist, policy maker and bibliophile by Giovanni Paoloni, Università La Sapienza, Rome Vito Volterra is generally considered one of the greatest mathematicians of his time: “His most important contributions were in higher analysis, mathematical physics, celestial mechanics, the mathematical theory of elasticity and mathematical biometrics. His major works in these fields included the foundation of the theory of functionals and the solution of the type of integral equations with variable limits that now bear his name, methods of integrating hyperbolic partial differential equations, the study of hereditary phenomena, optics of birifrangent media, the motion of the earth's poles and, in his last years, placing the laws of biological fluctuations on mathematical bases and establishing principles of a demographic dynamics that present analogies to the dynamics of material systems ” ( Dictionary of Scientific Biography). He was born in Ancona in 1860, and began his academic career as early as 1883, becoming full professor of Mechanics in the University of Pisa when he was only 23. In 1893 he moved to the University of Turin; in 1894 was elected a member of the Societ à Italiana delle Scienze, detta dei XL, in 1895 member of the Accademia delle Scienze di Torino, and in 1899 member of the most influential body of Italian academy, the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei. In 1900 he moved again, to teach Mathematical Physics in Rome, where he was to become for twelve years (1907-1919) the dean of the Faculty of Mathematical, Physical and Natural Sciences. In 1901 he inaugurated the new academic year with the lecture “Sui tentativi di applicazione delle matematiche alle scienze biologiche e sociali ”, showing a great interest for the applications of mathematics to the biological sciences and to the social and economic research. After 1900 his growing interest (both scientific and practical) for the relationship between scientific research and economic and social development, put him in touch with the new technocratic milieu emerging in Rome, under the political leadership of Giovanni Giolitti and Francesco Saverio Nitti, during the period usually described as the years of “industrial take-off”. In 1905 he became Senator, which represented a consecration of his new role as policy maker in the field of scientific research; in 1906 he promoted the creation of the Societ à Italiana per il Progresso delle Scienze (Association for the Advancement of Science), soon to become the most influential organization of the Italian scientific community in the first three decades of the 20th century; in 1912 he became president of the newly established Comitato Talassografico Italiano, a national and international endeavor for marine research in the Mediterranean Sea. He was also involved in the establishment of the national network for meteorology, and in the early stages of the Italian aeronautics. In 1914-1915 Volterra was very active in the Italian political debate on the European War. He was against the neutrality proclaimed at the outburst of the War, and in favor of an alliance with the French-British Entente against the Central Empires. When Italy broke its neutrality in 1915, May 24th, he entered the Army as volunteer in the Air Force, and was immediately involved in scientific and technical inter-allied cooperation. In 1917 he was appointed director of the Ufficio Invenzioni e Ricerche, from which the Italian National Research Council was to develop after the War, and in 1918-1919 he worked with the American astronomer George E. Hale, the British Arthur Schuster and the Belgian Georges Lecointe in the foundation of the International Research Council (later International Council of Scientific Unions). In 1920 he was elected president of the Societ à Italiana delle Scienze detta dei XL, in 1921 president of the Bureau International de Poids et M ésures and in 1923 president of the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei. Volterra, though he never published on the subject, was very interested in the history of science: in 1903, when the International Congress of Historical Sciences was held in Rome, he chaired the organizing committee of the section on history of science, and he always tried (unsuccessfully) to gain institutional and academic support for the discipline. He was involved in all the important institutional publishing of the works of great Italian scientists of the past, from Leonardo to Galileo, Torricelli and Volta. He was himself a bibliophile, and during his life built a collection of ancient science books which is now considered among the most important of the world; he frequently traveled to Paris, because of his academic and institutional role, and in Paris he used to spend many hours with antiquarian booksellers, mostly bouquinistes along the Seine: there he bought the best part of his collection. The collection is presently a part of the Burndy Library at the Dibner Institute, and it consists of three different groups of books: the professional library of Volterra himself, the collection of ancient books and the collection of offprints sent by colleagues from all over the world; on the whole, over 8.000 books and 17.000 offprints. Volterra had never liked Mussolini’s government. In a letter of 1922 to a French friend he expressed his “concern” for the political situation in Italy, but, like many other members of the liberal establishment, he did not question, at first, the legitimacy of a government appointed by the King. He simply continued the activities connected with his important institutional position, and kept cooperating, when necessary, with governmental bodies. Things began to change in 1924, when the “Matteotti affair” demonstrated the true nature of Fascism and precipitated the gradual transformation of the Mussolini government in plain dictatorship. Under these circumstances Volterra, who had been in 1923 an open opponent of the Educational Reform promoted by Giovanni Gentile, in October 1924 joined the Unione delle forze liberali e democratiche led by Giovanni Amendola, in 1925 signed the Manifesto degli intellettuali antifascisti proposed by Benedetto Croce, and soon after joined the group of anti-fascist Senators, the only legal group of opponents that Mussolini was forced to tolerate since he could not dissolve the Senate (composed of life-lasting members appointed by the King) as he had done with the other branch of the Parliament. In 1931 the university professors were ordered an oath of fidelity to the fascist government: by refusing it Volterra lost his academic position, and was forced to retire (only 12 university professors refused the oath); the story repeated in 1934, with a similar oath being imposed on the members of academies and science institutions: at this time, Volterra ceased to be a member of the Lincei. In 1938, being Jew, he was victim with his family of the racial laws, though, as a Senator, he was partially safeguarded against the worst aspects of anti-Semitic legislation. Volterra reacted with exceptional vitality to this situation: he kept going on with his scientific activity and kept alive his extraordinary network of relations, in Italy and abroad. He died in 1940, at the age of 80, a few months after Italy had entered WWII.

		BIBLIOTECA On Vito Volterra in English see the wonderful biography by Judith Goldstein: The Volterra Chronicles. The Life and Times of an Extraordinary Mathematician . American Mathematical Society, 2007. For more information. The Volterra Library, formerly housed at MIT, is today part of the Huntington Library. Know more.