219
S. Matteo in Arcetri, in which the two daught-
ters of Galileo were nuns: one named Arcangela, the
other Maria Celeste, his favourite, who, dying in 1634,
left her aged parent bereft of every consolation in the
midst of his trials. — Beyond this convent look at the
isolated large Villa, formerly possessed by the Ricci
family, called.
Pozzolatico, now the property of the Count Lar-
derel. — Near the Villa of Poggio Imperiale, and just
on the hill called Torselli, notice the :
Villa Boizart, which belonged to the Counts d’El-
ci, and the :
Villa Nespoli, commanding a beautiful view of
Florence and its environs. On the hill of Arcetri no-
tice also the elegant structure of the new :
Astronomical Observatory, founded by Prof. G.
B. Donati, who died in 1873. Among its curiosities
is preserved a great telescope, the work of the cele-
brated Amici — Above the
Pian di Giullari, is the
Torre del Gallo or Galileo ’s Observatory.
It belonged to the powerful family dei Galli. — No
other station, in the environs of Florence, affords a
prospect so extensive as that obtained from this' to¬
wer. — From this point the entire city, the suburbs,
the adjacent country, and the surrounding hills, are all
embraced within the field of view; and the superb
panorama thus revealed, cannot fail to impress the
beholder with feelings of the liveliest admiration at
the unrivalled beauty of this centre of the garden of
Italy — Among the armorial bearings, that adorn the
arches of the Court and the Sala Galileo, you perceive
the arms of the Galletti family, actual owners of