Son of Ignazio, machinist at the Museo di Fisica e Storia Naturale of Florence, which he joined as apprentice in c. 1782, later becoming his father's helper. In c. 1789, opened his own scientific-instrument workshop on Piazza Pitti in Florence. In 1806, was named macchinista regio (royal machinist) and, in 1807, succeeded his father at his museum post. In 1808, was asked to assist the Commission in charge of harmonizing Tuscan weights and measures with the French decimal metric system. For the purpose, he built a beam compass and, more significantly, "an instrument shaped like a small wheel for dividing wooden meters." Having resigned from the Museo in 1811 in order to devote himself to his workshop, he continued to work for the Florentine institution on a contract basis. Later returned to his post at the museum, obtaining a machinist apprenticeship for his son Galgano (1803-1868) in 1829.