Piero Sraffa

Sraffa's 1960 book, 'Production of Commodities by Means of Commodities,' mounted a rigorous mathematical critique of neoclassical economics. It successfully revived classical economics by demonstrating that prices could be determined by production costs independently of supply and demand.

Yes, Sraffa was a close friend and intellectual influence on the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein. Sraffa's famous gesture of brushing his nose with his fingers famously helped Wittgenstein realize the limitations of his early, rigid logical theories.

The influential Italian economist spent the vast majority of his career at the University of Cambridge in the UK. He worked closely with, and heavily influenced, the famous economist John Maynard Keynes.

Under the guidance of John Maynard Keynes, Sraffa dedicated decades of his life to editing the collected works of the classical economist David Ricardo. This monumental, multi-volume scholarly edition was published between 1951 and 1973.