Fr. Francesco Denza

Barnabite Fr. Francesco Denza (1834-1894) served as the first Director of the modern Vatican Observatory, from its re-founding in 1891 under Pope Leo XIII until Fr. Denza’s death in 1894. Under his leadership the Carte du Ciel telescope was installed in the Leonine Tower in 1891, and the Heliograph was installed in 1894 on the terrace of the Nuovo Braccio of the Museum of Pius VIII.