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  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  A finished shirt lays on a working table of the shirt division of the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5127.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  Finished shirts are ready to be packed at the shirt division of the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5146.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  Fabrics used for Kiton shirts are store on shelves at the shirt division of the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5157.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: Sebastiano Borrelli, supervisor of the shirt division, checks a fabric at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5190.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: Tailors sew shirts at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5205.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  A tailor works on a fabric used for a jacket at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5116.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  Maria Giovanna Paone, Vice President and General Manager of Kiton, checks a fabric at the blazer division of the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5526.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  Maria Giovanna Paone, Vice President and General Manager of Kiton, checks a fabric at the blazer division of the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5515.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  Maria Giovanna Paone, Vice President and General Manager of Kiton, opens a fabrics archive volume at the blazer division of the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5505.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  Maria Giovanna Paone, Vice President and General Manager of Kiton, checks a fabric at the blazer division of the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5488.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: Finished Kiton ties ready for packaging at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5364.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: Supervisor of the tie division places models on a fabric used for a tie, at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5340.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: Supervisor of the tie division places models on a fabric used for a tie, at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5337.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  Blazers worked by students hang on sartorial dummies at the Kiton School of High Tailoring at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5311.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: Students work on a blazer at the Kiton School of High Tailoring inside the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5295.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  Maria Giovanna Paone, Vice President and General Manager of Kiton, checks a fabric at the Ladies division of the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5231.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: Tailors work on blazers at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5068.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: Tailors work on blazers at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5058.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  The initials of a client are sewed in his personalized blazer at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_4871.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  A tailor works on a fabric used for a jacket at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_4753.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  A tailor works on a fabric used for a jacket at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_4752.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  Maria Giovanna Paone, Vice President and General Manager of Kiton, checks a fabric at the blazer division of the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5473.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: A shoemaker specialized in shoe coloring is here at work at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5454.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: A shoemaker specialized in shoe coloring is here at work at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5448.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: A shoemaker specialized in shoe coloring is here at work at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5439.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: Fabrics used for ties at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5353.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: Mario Abbondandolo, tailor and professor at the Kiton School of High Tailoring, checks a blazer worked by a student, at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5317.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: Students work on a blazer at the Kiton School of High Tailoring inside the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5290.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: Students work on a blazer at the Kiton School of High Tailoring inside the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5267.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  Maria Giovanna Paone, Vice President and General Manager of Kiton, checks a fabric at the Ladies division of the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5236.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  Maria Giovanna Paone, Vice President and General Manager of Kiton, checks a fabric at the Ladies division of the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5228.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: A tailor work on a blazer at the  Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_5043.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: A student practices on sewing a blazer at the blazer division of the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_4977.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: Tailors work on blazers at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_4911.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  A working table at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_4905.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: Cashmere and Vicuna fabrics at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_4855.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: Tailors at work at the blazer divisoin of the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_4798.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014: A oair of scissors are left on a working table during the lunch break at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_4779.jpg
  • ARZANO, ITALY - 16 January 2014:  A tailor works on a blazer at the Kiton factory in Arzano, Italy, on January 16th 2014.
    CIPG_20140116_LEMONDE_Kiton__M3_4756.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: A reproduction of Leonardo Da Vinci's original design sketch of the machine that creates warp threads and that is still used here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
 Da Vinci’s design allowed the artisans to stand while they oversaw the creation of the warp threads, instead of hunching over as with previous methods. For hundreds of years, this invention by Da Vinci has been hard at work helping generations of Florence’s weavers create the sumptuous fabrics for which they are renown.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most nob
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3764.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Filippo Ricci,  creative director of the eponymous luxury company started by his father, Stefano Ricci, poses for a portrait by the Ermisino fabrics in the showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill he owns in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Ermisino is an icon fabric of the ancient silk factory, a special type of Renaissance shot taffeta made with threads of different colours, so as to have tones that are shimmering and fluid like a cascade of light. Woven in three classic weights (leggero, scempio and doppio), for centuries it was the distinctive mark of the most illustrious nobility.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2473.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Filippo Ricci,  creative director of the eponymous luxury company started by his father, Stefano Ricci, poses for a portrait by the Ermisino fabrics in the showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill he owns in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Ermisino is an icon fabric of the ancient silk factory, a special type of Renaissance shot taffeta made with threads of different colours, so as to have tones that are shimmering and fluid like a cascade of light. Woven in three classic weights (leggero, scempio and doppio), for centuries it was the distinctive mark of the most illustrious nobility.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2435.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: A reproduction of Leonardo Da Vinci's original design sketch of the machine that creates warp threads and that is still used here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
 Da Vinci’s design allowed the artisans to stand while they oversaw the creation of the warp threads, instead of hunching over as with previous methods. For hundreds of years, this invention by Da Vinci has been hard at work helping generations of Florence’s weavers create the sumptuous fabrics for which they are renown.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most nob
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3682.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Filippo Ricci,  creative director of the eponymous luxury company started by his father, Stefano Ricci, poses for a portrait by the Ermisino fabrics in the showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill he owns in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Ermisino is an icon fabric of the ancient silk factory, a special type of Renaissance shot taffeta made with threads of different colours, so as to have tones that are shimmering and fluid like a cascade of light. Woven in three classic weights (leggero, scempio and doppio), for centuries it was the distinctive mark of the most illustrious nobility.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2455.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Filippo Ricci,  creative director of the eponymous luxury company started by his father, Stefano Ricci, poses for a portrait by the Ermisino fabrics in the showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill he owns in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Ermisino is an icon fabric of the ancient silk factory, a special type of Renaissance shot taffeta made with threads of different colours, so as to have tones that are shimmering and fluid like a cascade of light. Woven in three classic weights (leggero, scempio and doppio), for centuries it was the distinctive mark of the most illustrious nobility.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2453.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Filippo Ricci,  creative director of the eponymous luxury company started by his father, Stefano Ricci, poses for a portrait by the Ermisino fabrics in the showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill he owns in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Ermisino is an icon fabric of the ancient silk factory, a special type of Renaissance shot taffeta made with threads of different colours, so as to have tones that are shimmering and fluid like a cascade of light. Woven in three classic weights (leggero, scempio and doppio), for centuries it was the distinctive mark of the most illustrious nobility.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2417.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018:  Wooden shuttles and silk threads are seen here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six more “modern” semi-mechanical looms, from the 1800s, that can produce 10
    SMAS_20181026_NYT_Silk_DSCF5497.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Samples of silk fabrics are displayed here in the showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino displays  many of the 100 different kinds of fabric the mill can produce, with vignettes of them turned into pillows, sofas and curtains.<br />
<br />
Fabrics are priced accordingly, starting at about 200 euros a meter and going as high as 2000 euros a meter for lampasso, a special kind of damask so labor intensive to produce only 20 centimeters can be made a day. There are brocades, jacquards, damasks, shantung, satin, moire, rustic filaticcio and stiff, shimmering ermisino. The palette extends from pure “panna”, or cream, to delicate pastels and rich jewel tones, often shot with threads of gold or silver.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city�
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3902.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Punched Jacquard cards are seen here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The pattern created in the Jacquard cards directs the weaver, and it can take 2000 cards to produce 1.6 meters of fabric.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of f
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3772.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Beatrice Fazzini, a weaver, is seen here at work on the machine, created from a design by Leonardo Da Vinci that creates warp threads, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
 Da Vinci’s design allowed the artisans to stand while they oversaw the creation of the warp threads, instead of hunching over as with previous methods. For hundreds of years, this invention by Da Vinci has been hard at work helping generations of Florence’s weavers create the sumptuous fabrics for which they are renown.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance
    SMAS_20181026_NYT_Silk_DSCF5916.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Silk warp yarns are seen here in a handloom from the 1700s, that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six mor
    SMAS_20181026_NYT_Silk_DSCF5788.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Silk threads are seen here by the warp yarn in a handloom from the 1700s, that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joi
    SMAS_20181026_NYT_Silk_DSCF5742.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Silvania Marco Ribeiro, a weaver, works on the silk throwing process by a silk winding machine at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six more “modern” semi-mechan
    SMAS_20181026_NYT_Silk_DSCF5691.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Silvania Marco Ribeiro, a weaver, works on the silk throwing process by a silk winding machine at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six more “modern” semi-mechan
    SMAS_20181026_NYT_Silk_DSCF5671.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Silvania Marco Ribeiro, a weaver, works on the silk throwing process by a silk winding machine at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six more “modern” semi-mechan
    SMAS_20181026_NYT_Silk_DSCF5645.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Silvania Marco Ribeiro, a weaver, works on the silk throwing process by a silk winding machine at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six more “modern” semi-mechan
    SMAS_20181026_NYT_Silk_DSCF5568.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: A Broccato fabric is seen here as it is being processed in a handloom from the 1700s, that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day;
    SMAS_20181026_NYT_Silk_DSCF5376.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: A view of a handloom from the 1700s, that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, is seen here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six more “modern”
    SMAS_20181026_NYT_Silk_DSCF5375.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Luana Segreto, a weaver, is seen here working on a handloom dating back to the 1700s that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; t
    SMAS_20181026_NYT_Silk_DSCF5323.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Luana Segreto, a weaver, is seen here working on a handloom dating back to the 1700s that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; t
    SMAS_20181026_NYT_Silk_DSCF5306.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Weft<br />
yarn wounds on bobbins (pirns) are seen here on a handloom, dating back to the 1700s, that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a
    SMAS_20181026_NYT_Silk_DSCF5213.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Silk warp yarns are seen here in a handloom from the 1700s, that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six mor
    SMAS_20181026_NYT_Silk_DSCF5206.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Silk worm cocoons are seen here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six more “modern” semi-mechanical looms, from the 1800s, that can produce 10 meters daily. T
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_4008.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Rolls of silk fabrics are displayed here in the showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino displays  many of the 100 different kinds of fabric the mill can produce, with vignettes of them turned into pillows, sofas and curtains.<br />
<br />
Fabrics are priced accordingly, starting at about 200 euros a meter and going as high as 2000 euros a meter for lampasso, a special kind of damask so labor intensive to produce only 20 centimeters can be made a day. There are brocades, jacquards, damasks, shantung, satin, moire, rustic filaticcio and stiff, shimmering ermisino. The palette extends from pure “panna”, or cream, to delicate pastels and rich jewel tones, often shot with threads of gold or silver.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3938.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: A sofa and pillows made of silk fabrics are seen here in the showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino displays  many of the 100 different kinds of fabric the mill can produce, with vignettes of them turned into pillows, sofas and curtains.<br />
<br />
Fabrics are priced accordingly, starting at about 200 euros a meter and going as high as 2000 euros a meter for lampasso, a special kind of damask so labor intensive to produce only 20 centimeters can be made a day. There are brocades, jacquards, damasks, shantung, satin, moire, rustic filaticcio and stiff, shimmering ermisino. The palette extends from pure “panna”, or cream, to delicate pastels and rich jewel tones, often shot with threads of gold or silver.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3922.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Samples of silk fabrics are displayed here in the showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino displays  many of the 100 different kinds of fabric the mill can produce, with vignettes of them turned into pillows, sofas and curtains.<br />
<br />
Fabrics are priced accordingly, starting at about 200 euros a meter and going as high as 2000 euros a meter for lampasso, a special kind of damask so labor intensive to produce only 20 centimeters can be made a day. There are brocades, jacquards, damasks, shantung, satin, moire, rustic filaticcio and stiff, shimmering ermisino. The palette extends from pure “panna”, or cream, to delicate pastels and rich jewel tones, often shot with threads of gold or silver.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city�
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3899.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Samples of silk fabrics are displayed here in the showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino displays  many of the 100 different kinds of fabric the mill can produce, with vignettes of them turned into pillows, sofas and curtains.<br />
<br />
Fabrics are priced accordingly, starting at about 200 euros a meter and going as high as 2000 euros a meter for lampasso, a special kind of damask so labor intensive to produce only 20 centimeters can be made a day. There are brocades, jacquards, damasks, shantung, satin, moire, rustic filaticcio and stiff, shimmering ermisino. The palette extends from pure “panna”, or cream, to delicate pastels and rich jewel tones, often shot with threads of gold or silver.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city�
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3834.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Rolls of silk fabrics are displayed here in the showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The showroom of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino displays  many of the 100 different kinds of fabric the mill can produce, with vignettes of them turned into pillows, sofas and curtains.<br />
<br />
Fabrics are priced accordingly, starting at about 200 euros a meter and going as high as 2000 euros a meter for lampasso, a special kind of damask so labor intensive to produce only 20 centimeters can be made a day. There are brocades, jacquards, damasks, shantung, satin, moire, rustic filaticcio and stiff, shimmering ermisino. The palette extends from pure “panna”, or cream, to delicate pastels and rich jewel tones, often shot with threads of gold or silver.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3803.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: The machine made from a design by Leonardo Da Vinci, that creates warp threads, is seen here at work at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
 Da Vinci’s design allowed the artisans to stand while they oversaw the creation of the warp threads, instead of hunching over as with previous methods. For hundreds of years, this invention by Da Vinci has been hard at work helping generations of Florence’s weavers create the sumptuous fabrics for which they are renown.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own loo
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3716.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: The machine made from a design by Leonardo Da Vinci, that creates warp threads, is seen here at work at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
 Da Vinci’s design allowed the artisans to stand while they oversaw the creation of the warp threads, instead of hunching over as with previous methods. For hundreds of years, this invention by Da Vinci has been hard at work helping generations of Florence’s weavers create the sumptuous fabrics for which they are renown.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own loo
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3711.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Beatrice Fazzini, a weaver, is seen here at work on the machine, created from a design by Leonardo Da Vinci that creates warp threads, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
 Da Vinci’s design allowed the artisans to stand while they oversaw the creation of the warp threads, instead of hunching over as with previous methods. For hundreds of years, this invention by Da Vinci has been hard at work helping generations of Florence’s weavers create the sumptuous fabrics for which they are renown.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3689.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Beatrice Fazzini, a weaver, is seen here at work on the machine, created from a design by Leonardo Da Vinci that creates warp threads, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
 Da Vinci’s design allowed the artisans to stand while they oversaw the creation of the warp threads, instead of hunching over as with previous methods. For hundreds of years, this invention by Da Vinci has been hard at work helping generations of Florence’s weavers create the sumptuous fabrics for which they are renown.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3673.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Beatrice Fazzini, a weaver, is seen here at work on the machine, created from a design by Leonardo Da Vinci that creates warp threads, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
 Da Vinci’s design allowed the artisans to stand while they oversaw the creation of the warp threads, instead of hunching over as with previous methods. For hundreds of years, this invention by Da Vinci has been hard at work helping generations of Florence’s weavers create the sumptuous fabrics for which they are renown.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3558.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Daniela Fallani, a weaver, is seen here working on a handloom dating back to the 1700s that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day;
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3232.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: A weaver places weft<br />
yarn wound on a bobbin (pirn) into a wooden shuttle, as she works on a handloom dating back to the 1700s that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3227.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: A Broccato fabric, processed in a handloom from the 1700s, that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, is seen here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3223.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Silk threads are seen here by the warp yarn in a handloom from the 1700s, that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joi
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3219.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: A view of a handloom from the 1700s, that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, is seen here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six more “modern”
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3211.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Rows of hand looms, dating back to the 1700s, that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, are seen here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six more “
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3159.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Rows of hand looms, dating back to the 1700s, that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, are seen here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six more “
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3138.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018:  A wooden shuttle with a weft<br />
yarn wound on a bobbin (pirn) is seen here on fabric processed by  a handloom dating back to the 1700s, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_3091.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Simona Polimeni, a weaver, looks for a broken warp on a semi-mechanical loom from the 1800s that can produce 10 meters daily, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2994.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Simona Polimeni, a weaver, mends a broken warp on a semi-mechanical loom from the 1800s that can produce 10 meters daily, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by s
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2965.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Silvania Marco Ribeiro, a weaver, works on the silk throwing process by a silk winding machine at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six more “modern” semi-mechan
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2958.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Silk threads are seen here by the warp yarn in a handloom from the 1700s, that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joi
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2893.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Silk warp yarns are seen here in a handloom from the 1700s, that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six mor
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2887.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: A chain of punched Jacquard cards is seen here above a handloom from the 1700s at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The pattern created in the Jacquard cards directs the weaver, and it can take 2000 cards to produce 1.6 meters of fabric.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand loo
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2773.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: A chain of punched Jacquard cards is seen here above a handloom from the 1700s at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The pattern created in the Jacquard cards directs the weaver, and it can take 2000 cards to produce 1.6 meters of fabric.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand loo
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2768.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Luana Segreto, a weaver, is seen here working on a handloom dating back to the 1700s that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; t
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2710.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Luana Segreto, a weaver, is seen here working on a handloom dating back to the 1700s that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; t
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2700.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Rows of hand looms, dating back to the 1700s, that can produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day, are seen here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six more “
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2534.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: The main entrance of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six more “modern” semi-mechanical looms, from the 1800s, that can produce 10 meters daily. The mill won’
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2493.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: The main entrance of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six more “modern” semi-mechanical looms, from the 1800s, that can produce 10 meters daily. The mill won’
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2486.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Filippo Ricci,  creative director of the eponymous luxury company started by his father, Stefano Ricci, poses for a portrait by the hand looms from the 1700s at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill he owns in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeter
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2376.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Filippo Ricci,  creative director of the eponymous luxury company started by his father, Stefano Ricci, poses for a portrait by the hand looms from the 1700s at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill he owns in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeter
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2371.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Filippo Ricci,  creative director of the eponymous luxury company started by his father, Stefano Ricci, poses for a portrait by the hand looms from the 1700s at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill he owns in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeter
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2341.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Filippo Ricci,  creative director of the eponymous luxury company started by his father, Stefano Ricci, poses for a portrait by the hand looms from the 1700s at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill he owns in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeter
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2338.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Filippo Ricci,  creative director of the eponymous luxury company started by his father, Stefano Ricci, poses for a portrait by the hand looms from the 1700s at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill he owns in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeter
    CIPG_20181026_NYT_Silk_M3_2332.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018:  Wooden shuttles and silk threads are seen here at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six more “modern” semi-mechanical looms, from the 1800s, that can produce 10
    SMAS_20181026_NYT_Silk_DSCF5767.jpg
  • FLORENCE, ITALY - 26 OCTOBER 2018: Silk is reeled here by a  winding machine at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, an ancient silk mill in central Florence, Italy, on October 26th 2018.<br />
<br />
The Antico Setificio Fiorentino is a silk mill, located in central Florence within view of the old city walls in the San Frediano neighborhood, that produces the kind of fabrics destined for city palaces and country estates. The mill was bought in 2010 by Stefano Ricci from the Pucci, with an eye to using it to produce fabrics for the launch of a new home collection<br />
<br />
Lined up in rows are the dozen looms that take the slender threads, by now dyed emerald and ruby and sapphire, and weave them into the textiles that form a part of the fabric of Florentine life.<br />
<br />
Silk was made in the city as far back as the 1300s, a commodity to trade for precious materials. In more recent times, the fabric in the gowns in “Il Gattopardo” and “Death in Venice” came from the mill, as did much of Maris Callas’ wardrobe, robes for Popes, suits for Andre Bocelli, and Nelson Mandela’s silk shirts (when he wore one for his audience with Queen Elizabeth II she reportedly remarked, “that’s a beautiful shirt.”) The carmine red curtains at the Villa Medici and the Tribune of the Uffizi were made here. The Presidential Suite at the city’s Four Seasons Hotel is decked out in the mill’s output, as are the walls of the room of the Czars at the Kremlin, and more than 100 red velvet chairs emblazoned with the Kremlin’s golden crest.<br />
<br />
Back hundreds of years ago, in the Renaissance, most noble families had their own looms. But in 1786 the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Tuscany took all the looms of the private aristocratic families and put them in one place. They ended up at the Antico Setificio Fiorentino: six of them from the 1700s, hand looms that produce a mere 40 centimeters of fabric a day; they are joined by six more “modern” semi-mechanical looms, from the 1800s, that can produce 10 meter
    SMAS_20181026_NYT_Silk_DSCF5617.jpg
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