Botany and Genetics Building
The building, designed and constructed between 1932 and 1935 by the architect Giuseppe Capponi — a leading figure of European rationalist architecture — was originally created to house the Institute of Botany and Pharmaceutical Chemistry. Despite multiple internal modifications over the years, the structure has preserved its original formal character, a perfect expression of European rationalism.
The building is composed of two symmetrical longitudinal wings, flanked by a central body with two glazed towers. These towers originally housed museums and herbaria to the north, while the southern side was dedicated to small experimental greenhouses, which have now been converted into offices and laboratories. The rear base, once occupied by 700 m² of large greenhouses, has been converted into laboratories and the drying room of the Herbarium Museum.
The combination of horizontal and vertical elements, together with the juxtaposition of compact masses and wide transparent surfaces, gives the structure a unique sense of lightness and brightness. This design harmoniously balances aesthetics and functionality, optimizing the use of natural energy sources and ensuring effective ventilation.
Library
The departmental library preserves an impressive collection of about 60,000 documents and several collections of great historical and scientific value. Among the most notable is the Fondo Antico, containing 1,237 rare and ancient items, including:
- Commentarii in sex libros Pedacii Dioscoridis Anazarbei de materia medica (1565 edition) by the Sienese physician and botanist Pietro Andrea Mattioli, a fundamental text for pharmacists and apothecaries until the mid-19th century;
- Hesperides sive De malorum aureorum cultura et usu libri quatuor by Giovanni Battista Ferrari (1646), embellished with 79 copper engravings by renowned artists depicting botanical species and varieties of lemons and oranges;
- English Botany by James Sowerby (1790–1814), collected in 36 volumes, illustrated with splendid hand-colored drawings.
Museums
The department’s museums house a rich heritage of specimens and artifacts, accessible to the public through guided tours.
The Museum of Anthropology preserves about 6,000 human skeletal remains from prehistoric, protohistoric, and recent periods, remains of non-human primates, collections of anthropological instruments, plaster facial models, and a valuable series of casts of Prehominid and Hominid species. Among the most significant finds are the two Neanderthal skulls of Saccopastore (Rome, 120,000 years ago) and the Neolithic skeleton from Fonterossi in Abruzzo (about 5,000 years ago).
The Herbarium Museum boasts over one million botanical specimens and two collections of great scientific and historical relevance: the Hortus Nereidum, a pre-Linnaean collection of 592 scientifically and aesthetically valuable plates, and the cryptogamic collections of Giuseppe De Notaris (1805–1877), which include numerous type specimens accompanied by detailed descriptions and microscopic drawings.
Botanical Garden of Rome
The Botanical Garden hosts more than 2,500 plant species from around the world and is enriched by architectural elements of remarkable historical and artistic interest. Among the most outstanding features are the Fountain of the Tritons and the Staircase of the Eleven Fountains — conceived as a scenic backdrop for the entire park — along with the three historic greenhouses: the Corsini Greenhouse, the French Greenhouse, and the Monumental Greenhouse.