Dell'Acqua, a Milanese, was surely one of Italy's ablest and most important instrument makers of the nineteenth century. Began his career as mechanic at the Imperial Regio Ginnasio Liceale of Sant'Alessandro, then became engineer-mechanic at La Specola in Florence. His workshop there produced hundreds of high-quality physics instruments for conducting experiments in mechanics, thermology, optics, electricity, and other fields. Dell'Acqua, whose reputation spread beyond Lombardy, supplied apparatuses for many Italian laboratories and institutes. In 1864, he co-founded Tecnomasio Italiano, a scientific-instrument firm. Member of several Italian and international academies and winner of many awards.