Eschinardi, Francesco (Costanzo Amichevoli)

Francesco Eschinardi (December 13, 1623 - January 12, 1703), also known by the pseudonym Costanzo Amichevoli, was an Italian Jesuit, cartographer, physicist, and mathematician. He was born in Rome, but details regarding his childhood are nonexistent until his 1637 entry to the Society of Jesus at 14. There he remained, eventually becoming a professor of logic, physics, and metaphysics at the Roman College, traveling throughout Italy to teach at other universities. While Eschinardi is not primarily noted for his maps, he was a skilled astronomer and familiar with scientific movements and the great thinkers of his day, including Copernicus and Galileo (despite his own affirmation of the geocentric theory). He was the first to observe the Comet of 1668; he was among the first to see the Great Comet of 1680, and it was from him that Cassini and Halley received the observation. Eschinardi was also fascinated by history: he corresponded with Halley on the archaeology of Rome, and his cartographic work relied on comparing existing models, corrected with the application of historical reports. In addition to Cassini and Halley, he also collaborated with Jesuit scholars Athanasius Kircher and Mario Bettinus. Eschinardi published widely on mechanics and astronomy. His geographical writings included one of the earliest proposals for a canal connecting the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. He also produced maps of Rome, and, in 1674, one of the first, detailed, printed maps of Abysinnia.