Vicenza's history follows a richer vein than that in any mine. Local entrepreneurs and artisans have cast and hammered the rare metals since the 1300's, constantly experimenting and improving upon new material and production techniques. These processes have been jealously guarded by the various families, handed down along with arcane secrets of alchemy and enormous fortunes in gold bars.
That the lives of Vicentine "high society" revolved around the gold trade is particularly evident on the Piazza dei Signori, which serves, even now, as a sort of open-air community center.
Here, among colorful fabrics and other wares, the showcases of goldsmiths still glitter with splendid, hand-crafted items as they did 600 years ago. In Medieval times, the goldsmith’s guild industries were all concentrated in the ancient Piazza dei Signori, Piazza delle Biade and Piazza delle Erbe where artisans wove intricate patterns of long threads of gold.
Shopping
Architecture, Vicenza's Greatest Gold
The Golden Numbers
Back to Cover Page
|
 |
|
