Vannoccio Biringuccio, sometimes spelt
Vannocio Biringuccio (c. 1480 – c. 1539), was an
Italian metallurgist. He is best known for his manual on
metalworking,
De la pirotechnia, published posthumously in 1540. Biringuccio is considered by some as the father of the
foundry industry as
De la pirotechnia is the first printed account of proper foundry practice. It also gives details of
mining practice, the extraction and
refining of numerous
metals,
alloys such as
brass, and
compounds used in foundries and
explosives. It preceded the printing of
De re metallica by
Georgius Agricola by 14 years.