The Museum of Physics and Natural History devoted major resources to research in meteorology and its instruments. In 1839 the Director, Vincenzo Antinori (1792-1865), founded the Central Italian Meteorological Station. The workshops of the Museum also played an important role thanks to the competence of talented craftsmen, such as the mechanics Anton Francesco Gori (1691-1757) and Gaspero Mazzeranghi (18th century), the Court cabinet-maker Francesco Spighi (18th century), and the inventor Lorenzo Turchini (1793-1860).