At the Heart of the Ateneo. The Regio Istituto Tecnico e Nautico of Bari

In mid-nineteenth-century Bari, technical knowledge finally found a permanent home. In 1866, the Istituto Tecnico Provinciale was founded, soon joined by the older Scuola Nautica, established in 1858. Two distinct yet complementary institutions, they were eventually united by the Province into a single body: the Regio Istituto Tecnico e Nautico. With the completion and official approval of the renovation works at the Palazzo Ateneo (1881–82), the Institute moved into the building: first occupying the ground and first floors of the north wing, and, after 1887, extending to the second floor as well. The move marked a leap forward – not only for technical and nautical education but for the city itself, which now possessed a true training infrastructure serving its economy and maritime industry. The Institute became a small citadel of practical knowledge: laboratories of physics and chemistry, rooms for natural sciences, construction and practical geometry, drawing schools, and spaces dedicated to agronomy. The nautical section included classrooms for astronomy, navigation, hydrography, and workshops for machinists. Over a thousand square metres of instruments and models turned theory into tangible experience. This period of growth was guided by Onofrio Porcelli (1846–1906), a mathematician from Bari educated in Naples, and translator — first with his mentor Giuseppe Battaglini — of Isaac Todhunter’s algebra manuals, which introduced a modern didactic approach to the subject in Italy. As headmaster from 1883, Porcelli combined scientific rigour with administrative vision: he secured funding, enriched the laboratories, and renewed the curriculum. In the obituary dedicated to him, his colleagues remembered him as “calm and serene, considerate, tolerant, benevolent (calmo e sereno, riguardoso, tollerante, benevolo),” yet he was also an indefatigable builder of an institution that attracted students from across Apulia. Over time, the Institute faced new challenges: its official recognition as equivalent to government schools (1872); the introduction of three main study sections; and, in 1908, the admission of the first female students. In 1917, the Nautical School passed under the control of the Navy, and by 1921 it had become independent. The Gentile Reform of 1923 reshaped the educational programmes, and in 1924, with the founding of the Regia Università Adriatica “Benito Mussolini”, the Istituto Tecnico began to vacate the Ateneo, gradually relocating until its new building was inaugurated on 6 March 1930, under the name Giulio Cesare. In 1970, the surveying branch proudly restored its historic title: Pitagora.

___Stefano Daniele & Francesco Paolo de Ceglia