Captain D’Albertis (1846-1932) was a traveller, a writer, the adventurous and curious spirit who crossed the City’s history for half a century, in full connection with the sea and travels, thus becoming part of the cultural and scientific history of Genoa at the end of the 19th century.
After starting in the Navy, he moved to the Merchant Navy to focus full-time on yachting and ultimately founded the first Italian Yachting Club in 1879. Onboard the “Violante” and the “Corsaro”, his two cutters, he crossed the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, following Columbus’s route to San Salvador.
His encounters with Marquis Giacomo Doria, the founder of the Civic Museum of Natural History, drew him closer to research: during his travels, he conducted analyses on the seawater, fish and plants.
He circumnavigated the globe and Africa three times, aboard the most varied means of transport: from a ship to a horse, from a train to a camel, from sail boats to seaplanes.
He built over 100 sundials around the world (ten of which are exhibited in the Castle), shot thousands of pictures, collected weapons, guns and spears.