FOREWORD Italian algebraic geometry started life in the second half of the 19th century, and coincided with the emergence of a new direction of geometric research connected with the work of the Italian geometer

FOREWORD Italian algebraic geometry started life in the second half of the 19th century, and coincided with the emergence of a new direction of geometric research connected with the work of the Italian geometer Luigi Cremona (1830-1903). It was around 1860, in fact, that Cremona abandoned the more specifically algebraic, demonstrative methods of his masters Bordoni and Brioschi to follow an autonomous approach in the direction of pure geometry. This new boost given to Cremona’s work and activity stemmed from his earnest commitment to reviving Italian science [l]. As a result, scientific research in every sphere flourished, international contacts were restored, and new university chairs were established, including the Chair of Higher Geometry at Bologna University which, in 1860, Cremona was the first to occupy. Foreign contacts also improved as a result of interest in synthetic geometry and the work of von Staudt, Poncelet, and others, which created common ground for