Abramo Colorni

Abramo Colorni was an Italian-Jewish polymath and Renaissance man. An engineer, architect, mathematician, chiromancer, cryptographer, alchemist, inventor, magus (magician) and merchant, Colorni spent nine years as a Court Jew for Rudolf II. He is the author of the 1593 treatise on cryptography, Scotographia. As court alchemist, he was a major player in cultural transfer from Italy to Baden-Wurttemberg and Prague. He was born in, and died in, Mantua, Italy.