SETA

Silk

Silk arrived in Florence in the XIV century when master weavers were exiled from the original centre of silk production in Tuscany, Lucca, that had been captured and sacked by Pisa in 1314.

In the XV century the Florentines began cultivating silk worm, and more importantly, it was in this century that they developed the velvets, damasks, brocades and the lampas that were highly sought out in all corners of Europe.

Via Por Santa Maria is considered the oldest road in Florence  and the name comes from the passageway through the first city walls called Porta Santa Maria for the namesake church that burnt down centuries ago.

During the Florentine Republic, this road was the hotbed of the silk trade.