In 1757, under Grand Duke Francis Stephen, the Chair of Chemistry was instituted. In 1907 the Chair was occupied by Raffaello Nasini, the father of Italian physical chemistry, who was succeeded by Camillo Porlezza in 1929. After 1955 the number of chairs progressively increased to five. The Department, instituted in 1985, has encapsulated the five Chemical Institutes (Analytical, Inorganic, Physical, Organic and Organic Industrial Chemistry) in addition to the Library of the Institute. The Porlezza Collection, currently stored in a warehouse at Ospedaletto, is formed of instruments coming from chemical laboratories, dating from the late 19th to the mid-20th century; it includes electroscopes, microscopes, colorimeters and spectroscopes.