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Autograph letter signed by Guiseppe Piazzi, in Italian. Two pages, on both sides of single sheet. 24.5x18 cm (9¾x7"), matted & framed with a portrait of Piazzi under double-sides UV protective plexiglass, overall 41.5x49 cm (16½x19¼").

Rare original autograph letter from the Italian astronomer and mathematician Giuseppe Piazzi (1746-1826), a Catholic priest of the Theatine order, who founded an observatory at Palermo in 1790. One of his major accomplishments was the discovery of Ceres, a dwarf planet, the largest member of the asteroid belt. The present letter acknowledges receipt of a case of books, and goes on to describe Ramsden's micrometer (with a small sketch of the instrument within the letter), and mentions the discovery of a "new planet" by Heinrich Olbers (this would be the asteroid Vesta, discovered on March 29, 1807). A fine letter with significant scientific content from a major figure in the history of astronomy.