Achille Forti (1878-1937) was a botanist of Verona who studied under Pier Andrea Saccardo and graduated in Natural Sciences in Padua. He devoted himself so intensely to the study of algae that he soon became an acknowledged expert in the field. His algarium is made up of around a thousand different genera, both fresh water and salt water. Given the quantity of species and range of geographic origins, and the fact that there are certain holotypes included, it represents one of the most important 19th-century collections in the sphere of algology worldwide.

Bequeathed to the Botanical Institute of Padua in 1937, the collection comprises some 30,000 specimens mounted on sheets or inserted in pinned envelopes, dating from the period 1850-1936. It also includes slides and drawings. The specimens were gathered personally during sundry trips around the Balkans, various Mediterranean countries and Norway, or procured as part of collections acquired in various ways from other botanists, including Francesco Ardissone, Angelo Mazza, Josephine Tilden and Antonio Piccone (with Giacomo Doria’s specimens). All materials came from everywhere around the world. They were sent to Forti by numerous scholars and enthusiasts, as well as by travellers on 19th-century oceanographic expeditions like those of the cutter ‘Corsaro’ and the steam corvette ‘Vettor Pisani’. Along with the numerous works published by Forti, the algarium also provides information on the local uses of certain species.