On June 11, 2026, the city of Lucca paid homage to Eugenio Barsanti and Felice Matteucci by inaugurating the monument located in Piazza Monsignor Emilio Maggini, inside Porta San Pietro.
The monument represents the city's permanent recognition of the two inventors who, with their intuition and their work, laid the foundations of modern motorization, changing the course of history and technology.
The work was created by the Barsanti and Matteucci ETS Foundation with the participation of the Rotary Club of Lucca , which, under the presidency of Nicola Giannecchini , dedicated its 2025-2026 service to this project, involving numerous local companies who chose to actively support its implementation. Among the companies that contributed: Acqua Silva, Akeron, Cartiere Modesto Cardella, Cartografica Galeotti, CELFA, Foto Alcide, Giglioli, Grand Hotel Guinigi, Gruppo Giannecchini, Guidi Gino, Italian Decoration, Lucar, Martinelli Impianti, Orti di Via Elisa, and Vando Battaglia Costruzioni.
An example of collaboration between institutions, associations, and the business community, this project has allowed the city to be gifted a work destined to preserve the memory of Barsanti and Matteucci over time.
The project also saw the collaboration of the Municipality of Lucca and the Superintendency of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape , with whom the Foundation shared the authorization and planning process that led to the identification of the monument's definitive location.
The monument represents much more than a work of art. It is a tangible sign of a memory restored to the city, an invitation to rediscover the value of scientific research, ingenuity, and the capacity for innovation that made Barsanti and Matteucci the protagonists of one of the most important inventions in history.
With this work, Lucca renews its bond with two men who looked beyond their time, leaving a legacy that continues to speak to the world today.
Giulia Santarini is a sculptor from Lucca, a graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts in Carrara. Her artistic research combines natural materials, metals, and industrial elements, transforming them into sculptures and kinetic installations. Movement plays a central role in her work, culminating in the creation of mechanical sculptures in action.
For her works she has often availed herself, as in this case, of the collaboration of the mechanic Paolo Ciorli , owner of the company MeccanicaMente, who takes care of the design and construction of the moving parts.
https://www.giuliasantarini.it/it - Instagram: giuliasantariniscultura
The monument was designed and created by the sculptor Giulia Santarini , in collaboration with the mechanic Paolo Ciorli for the moving parts, and the architect Chiara Lazzari who oversaw its architectural insertion.
The sculpture, 1,60 metres high , reaches a total height of 3,65 metres including the base and the large ring that encloses the work.
The busts of Barsanti and Matteucci are made using the technique of soldered copper rings, a signature style of the sculptor. Inside the work, a mechanism of metal elements is brought to life, set in motion by the pressure of the fountain's water, evoking the invention of the internal combustion engine and the dynamism it gave rise to. The large outer circle symbolically recalls the world of ideas, research, and innovation, in which the partnership between the two scientists continues to inspire new generations today.
The monument's inauguration ceremony took place on June 11, 2026, as part of an event celebrating the great invention of the two illustrious Lucchese men.
The day opened with the conference "History of a Revolutionary Invention: Barsanti and Matteucci's Internal Combustion Engine," which took place in the auditorium of the Banca del Monte di Lucca Foundation.
The unveiling of the work was particularly moving , in Piazza Monsignor Emilio Maggini , in the presence of the authorities, representatives of the academic world, associations, companies that supported the project and numerous citizens.
Subsequently, the Barsanti and Matteucci engine was put into operation , rebuilt by the Barsanti and Matteucci Group of the Florentine Vintage Motorcycle Club (CMEF), allowing the public to see the first internal combustion engine in history in operation again.
The day concluded in the same square with a popular musical performance by the Associazione Musicale Lucchese , which accompanied the audience at the end of the ceremony, helping to make even more significant a day dedicated to the memory, art, and genius of two of Lucca's most illustrious citizens.
The inauguration ceremony of the monument was preceded by the conference "History of a revolutionary invention: the internal combustion engine of Barsanti and Matteucci" , coordinated by the President of the Foundation, Maria Luisa Beconcini , which saw the participation of authoritative representatives from the scientific, academic, industrial and cultural worlds.
Speakers included Andrea Cantile , President of the Ximenian Observatory, Amedeo Alpi , Vice President of the Accademia dei Georgofili, Giuseppe La Motta , representative of Baker Hughes Nuovo Pignone, Francesco Fabbri , Head of External Relations of the Barsanti and Matteucci Group of the Florentine Vintage Motorcycle Club (CMEF), Luca Manneschi , President of the ASI Culture Commission, and the artists Giulia Santarini and Paolo Ciorli , authors of the monument.
Through different but complementary perspectives, the presentations reconstructed the human and scientific experiences of Barsanti and Matteucci, examining their contribution to the evolution of technology, the historical recognition of their invention, and the significance of the inaugurated work.
One of the day's exciting moments was the commissioning of the reproduction of the Barsanti and Matteucci engine, built by the Barsanti and Matteucci Group of the Florentine Vintage Motorcycle Club (CMEF) based on the original designs of the two Lucca inventors.
Seeing it back in operation, over 170 years after its invention, was a truly moving moment, allowing those present to truly understand the value of Eugenio Barsanti and Felice Matteucci's intuition and the fundamental role it played in the development of modern motorization.
