Florence's Istituto Tecnico Toscano was founded in the 19th century and in 1987 its extensive collections of natural history, scientific instruments and models were recently given a new home near the university, sponsored by the city's main science museum, the Museo Galileo.
Although only scholars who book ahead have access to some of the collections such as natural history, the general public is welcome to the Cabinet of Physics with its 2000 plus machines dating from the 19th century—the largest collection in Italy, and in the planetarium, added in 2002, for sessions (in Italian) run by astronomers from Florence's Astrophysical Observatory of Arcetri.
Via Giusti 29
Hours Cabinet of Physics open Wed—Fri 10.30am—2.30pm, Sat & Sun 10.30—6pm. 15 June to 15 September: Wed—Sun: 10.30am—1.00pm
For the Planetarium, check the website for upcoming sessions; (book a place at +39 055 2343723 Mon—Fri 9am—4pm).
Adm Free
+39 055 2341157
Image by Sailko, GNU Free Documentation License