Gianello (aka Giovan) Toriano (aka Torriani, Turrian)

Inventor of the Cristalino astronomical clock and a remarkably lifelike mandolin-playing lady automaton, Toriano was an Italo-Spanish inventor, clockmaker, engineer and mathematician born in Cremona, in northern Italy around 1500. His skill in clockwork was well known even in his teen years. Called to Spain in 1529 by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, the emperor sent word to major cities that he needed a skilled clockmaker who could repair the Astrarium built in the fourteenth century by Giovanni de' Dondi in Padua.

He was hired for the job, and upon inspection he came to the conclusion that the clock was rusted and worn beyond repair. He was then appointed Court Clock Master and built the Cristalino, an astronomical clock that made him famous in his time. Philip II of Spain named him Matemático Mayor. It took him 20 years to design the clock, and then 3 and a half more years to make it all by hand. An annalist of Philip II said, "The clock had all of 1800 wheels—and many other things of iron and brass that are involved."

Toriano is most well-known for a mandolin-playing lady automaton that he built for Emperor Charles V, which was extremely lifelike in its motions for the times. The female player could walk in lines and tilt her head, and the automaton still exists today in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.