Giacomo Filippo Durazzo
Head of the wealthiest family in Genoa; naturalist and bibliophile
About Giacomo Filippo Durazzo
Lived 1729 – 1812 (aged 82–83). Giacomo Filippo Durazzo was a naturalist.
Giacomo Filippo Durazzo III (1729–1812) was the head of the wealthiest 18th-century family in Genoa, Italy, and a notable naturalist and bibliophile. He was instrumental in organizing the natural history collections in the University of Genoa and the city's Civic Museum of Natural History.
Durazzo was born 3 March 1729 in Genoa, the son of Marcello Durazzo (1703–1787) and Clelia Durazzo (1709–1782). His descendants include Clelia Durazzo Grimaldi and Ignazio Alessandro Pallavicini, both naturalists in their own right. He was also a patron and supporter of Genoa's emergent scientific community, hosting encounters and seminars between the city's leading academics, including university reformer Giovanni Antonio Mongiardini, chemist Cesare Nicolò Canefri, and British physician William Batt.
Over the course of 30 years, Durazzo collected more than 4,000 books, as well as many specimens of minerals, fossils, shells, physical and electrical devices, etc. In the 1780s Durazzo established a natural history cabinet and a laboratory in his private villa of Cornigliano. Its collection was documented by English botanist James Edward Smith in 1787, but after Durazzo's death, it was not preserved.
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Important facts
People in Giacomo Filippo Durazzo's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
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Frequently asked questions
Who was Giacomo Filippo Durazzo?
head of the wealthiest family in Genoa; naturalist and bibliophile
When was Giacomo Filippo Durazzo born?
Giacomo Filippo Durazzo was born in 1729 in Genoa.
When did Giacomo Filippo Durazzo die?
Giacomo Filippo Durazzo died in 1812 in Genoa.
What was Giacomo Filippo Durazzo's occupation?
Giacomo Filippo Durazzo was a naturalist.
What nationality was Giacomo Filippo Durazzo?
Giacomo Filippo Durazzo's recorded nationality: Republic of Genoa.
Sources & further reading
· Wikipedia: Giacomo Filippo Durazzo
· DBpedia: Giacomo Filippo Durazzo
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Giacomo Filippo Durazzo. https://biography.guide/giacomo-filippo-durazzo/
MLA: "Giacomo Filippo Durazzo." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/giacomo-filippo-durazzo/.
Chicago: "Giacomo Filippo Durazzo." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/giacomo-filippo-durazzo/.
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