Stefano Delle Chiaje (25 April 1794 – 18 December 1860) was an Italian

zoologist Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the structure, embryology, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct, and how they interact with their ecosystems. Zoology is one ...

botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

anatomist Anatomy () is the branch of morphology concerned with the study of the internal structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old scien ...

and

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

. Delle Chiaje studied medicine in Naples, where he was a pupil of Giuseppe Saverio Poli. Together they started compiling books on the

bivalves Bivalvia () or bivalves, in previous centuries referred to as the Lamellibranchiata and Pelecypoda, is a class of aquatic molluscs (marine and freshwater) that have laterally compressed soft bodies enclosed by a calcified exoskeleton consis ...

and the gastropod molluscs of the

Kingdom of the Two Sicilies The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies () was a kingdom in Southern Italy from 1816 to 1861 under the control of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, a cadet branch of the House of Bourbon, Bourbons. The kingdom was the largest sovereign state by popula ...

. He later taught

pathology Pathology is the study of disease. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when used in the context of modern medical treatme ...

and performed research in the field of

malacology Malacology, from Ancient Greek μαλακός (''malakós''), meaning "soft", and λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study", is the branch of invertebrate zoology that deals with the study of the Mollusca (molluscs or mollusks), the second-largest ...

. He erected the genus of nemertean worms ''Polia'', naming it in honour of Poli, and described ''Polia lineata'' and ''Polia siphunculus''. The latter has since been synonymised with '' Cerebratulus marginatus'', but Delle Chiaje's description shows an understanding of the animal's anatomy and recognition of its constituent parts that was missing among many of his contemporaries. He made a study of the skeletons and detached bones found during the excavations of the buried city of

Pompeii Pompeii ( ; ) was a city in what is now the municipality of Pompei, near Naples, in the Campania region of Italy. Along with Herculaneum, Stabiae, and Villa Boscoreale, many surrounding villas, the city was buried under of volcanic ash and p ...

, making deductions on the health of the population, their characters and occupations, the types of injuries they suffered and the skill of their surgeons. He is also remembered for his research in the field of botany, especially medicinal plants, and of

zoology Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the anatomy, structure, embryology, Biological classification, classification, Ethology, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinction, extinct, and ...

, with particular reference to the taxonomy of invertebrates of the Kingdom of Naples.S. Delle Chiaie, ''Memorie sulla storia e notomia degli animali senza vertebre del Regno di Napoli'', 5 voll., Stamp. Società Tipografica, Napoli 1822-1829. In 1842 he was admitted as an associate to the Accademia nazionale delle scienze in Rome. From 1846 to 1860 he was the

curator A curator (from , meaning 'to take care') is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the particular ins ...

of the Museo di Anatomia Umana at Naples.

Taxon named in his honor

The

brittle star Brittle stars, serpent stars, or ophiuroids (; ; referring to the serpent-like arms of the brittle star) are echinoderms in the class Ophiuroidea, closely related to starfish. They crawl across the sea floor using their flexible arms for locomot ...

'' Amphiura chiajei'' was named in his honour.

Taxa named by Stefano delle Chiaje

*'' Amphipholis squamata'', the brooding snake star and the dwarf brittle star.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Delle Chiaje, Stefano Italian curators Italian anatomists 19th-century Italian botanists Scientists from the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies Italian pathologists 19th-century Italian zoologists 1794 births 1860 deaths