The author wishes to acknowledge the valuable assistance received from
the following: DR. AMOS AVERY, Amherst, Massachusetts; MR. EDWIN A.
BATTISON, curator of light machinery and horology, U.S. National Museum;
DOTT. RICHARD BLAAS, Oesterreiches Staatsarchiv, Vienna; DOTT. ADOLFO
CETTO, librarian, Biblioteca Comunale di Trento, who made copies of
Borghesi's two volumes available; SIGNOR MARIO DI MARIO, editor of _La
Clessidra_, Rome, who permitted several of the illustrations in Sig.
Luigi Pippa's article to be used herein; MR. WALTER A. GILBERT, Norwich,
Connecticut; DR. HEINRICH LINARDI, Uhrenmuseum der Stadt Wien, Vienna;
SIGNOR LUIGI PIPPA, Milan, Italy; CAV. ING. GUIDO UCELLI DI NEMI,
Presidente, and DOTT. FEDERICO MORELLI and CAV. ORAZIO CURTI of the
Museo Nazionale della Scienza e della Tecnica, Milan, for their
cooperation on the descriptions and illustrations of the restored
clockshop of Bartolomeo Antonio Bertolla; and DR. EDWARD WATERS,
Division of Music, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
The translation from Francesco Borghesi's Latin texts, which made this
study possible, were made by: REV. NEIL HERLIHY, S.J., REV. FRANCIS J.
HEYDEN, S.J., and REV. STEPHEN X. WINTERS, S.J., Georgetown University,
Washington, D.C.; and REV. DANIEL HUNTER, O.P., and REV. ROBERT STENGER,
O.P., Dominican House of Studies, Washington, D.C.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Figure 2.--PORTRAIT OF FATHER FRANCESCO BORGHESI,
inventor and designer of the astronomical clock in the Museum of History
and Technology.]
Another of the clerical clockmakers was Father Aurelianus à San Daniele
(1728-1782), an Augustine monk in the monastery of the Imperial Court at
Vienna.[5] His four complicated astronomical clocks, which exist in
museums at present, are comparable to those produced by Father Hahn. The
third cleric was Brother David à San Cajetano (1736-1796) in the same
Augustine order to which Father Aurelianus belonged. He achieved note as
the author of various publications, including _Neue Rädergebäude_[6]
[New Construction of Wheels] relating to planet-wheels, or gear-trains
containing epicyclic elements. He constructed a clock based on an
elaborate astronomical design which was substantially different from the
others. The fourth of the ecclesiasts who designed astronomical clocks
in this period was Father Klein of Prague, who produced a complicated
astronomical timepiece in about 1738.
The fact that such important and outstanding examples of astronomical
clocks were produced exclusively by ecclesiasts in Austria during the
second half of the 18th century is especially significant. It is
particularly so when a fifth cleric is added to the group, also an
Austrian subject although Italian by heritage, in the person of Father
Francesco Borghesi.
Although only Father Borghesi's second astronomical clock is now known,
it is apparent that this example in the Museum of History and Technology
represents an experiment in astronomical time-telling comparable to any
of the timepieces produced by Father Hahn, Father Aurelianus, Brother
David à San Cajetano or Father Klein.
This combination of five clerical clockmakers who lived in the same
region during the same period of time is sufficiently unusual. However,
the fact that each of them apparently worked without association with
any of the others leads to the conjecture that a common factor must have
led them to their individual preoccupation with astronomical horology.
What the link may have been is not apparent from the surviving records
of the lives and works of these clerics. Certainly it was not an
interest in astronomy or clockmaking per se, because other than the
astronomical clocks, none of these horological inventors--with the
possible exception of Father Hahn--worked in any other aspect of the
fields of astronomy or horology. However, after a comprehensive study of
Father Borghesi's writings, there is little doubt of the religious basis
of his own inspiration.