The tanning industry in Solofra THE GOLDEN YEARS. Society, economy and territory in 16th-century Solofra

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1 The tanning industry in Solofra THE GOLDEN YEARS Society, economy and territory in 16th-century Solofra A. Cogliano, M. De Maio, M. Sammarco, L. De Venezia, A. De Blasi Abstract The Objectives The Historic Background The Project Team Content and materials of the Project Abstract The presence in Florence and a show and event in Solofra about the world of tanning and on what is largely considered its "Golden Age": what are the motivations behind such a great and ambitious project? The reasons are three fold: first of all, to revive and save a culture of work, the men and women who built the history and identity of the community, and an industrial archaeology. Secondly, to revitalize an urban and artistic history whose symbols and antique splendour are exemplified by Palazzo Ducale and the Collegiata di S. Michele, the frescoes executed by Guarino and a city widely known for its natural beauty and its strategic position. Finally, to give Solofra a new lease on life in terms of production, the social fabric, and tourism, in light of a historic memory and the extraordinary course of a community that played a prominent role nationally and internationally. How could we talk about great Italian production in the footwear sector and leather goods without mentioning Solofra? Today, as in the past, remote populations and countries (Asia, Africa and the Americas) are brought together through the exchange of leathers, wool, tanning products, semi-finished products, experience, techniques and master craftsmen. Remembering this means further expanding the borders of Europe and the world. The exchange of technologies and products has always had great influence on the social and cultural development of the respective populations. Solofra was and remains on the cutting edge: imitated and at times surpassed, it is still the workshop of the world and technologies and craftsmanship that bring elsewhere their hundreds of years of experience. The Historic Background Solofra is a very ancient tanning district and it once held immense significance as a

2 commercial hub in the Salerno, Longbard and Norman principalities. In the Angioino period, it defined its importance in the world as a unique city in southern Italy due to its exceptional production and trade of leather, wool and skins and hides. The long Vespro war that took place in the last two decades of the 13th century caused Jewish craftsmen to flee from Cilento and Salerno and take refuge in Solofra. In the 14th century, a mercantile and manufacturing class developed and prospered to the detriment of the feudal forces and the Church. The 16th century represented its Golden Age. Since then, even in the depressed southern Italian economy, Solofra represented an oasis of capitalist modernity that navigated, alone and independently in the kingdom, between a feudal sea and the productive apparatus of the Amalfi Coast, protected by the State. Production, finance, and business were functions carried out by oligarchial groups of mercantile families that controlled the urban areas, intelligently used the natural resources (water, woods and surrounding countryside), and dominated the feudal forces. They governed the cities and the markets of the kingdom on par with the Medici, Bardi, Peruzzi of Florence, the Spinola of Genoa and the Mocenigo of Venice. Employment, finance, and mercantilism have had a special configuration that escaped comprehension of the scientific community. Even in the face of a marginal out-of-thehome, salaried job, there was strong capitalistic development: central figures were the families of city aristocrats (no more than fifteen or so) which were organized not as corporations nor as enterprises with impersonal capital, but into clans and extended tribal structures. They ran the businesses, produced the goods, inspected the raw materials, allocated the finished product, and travelled to the trade fairs and markets across the Kingdom and in other regional Italian states. These families experimented on brand new societal and financial forms, similar and yet completely different from the municipalities and the nascent Italian and European capitalism, each individual component of the family had a diverse specialization and a separate family residence in the Kingdom. They formed societas of skills, labour, capital and monopolistic control of the trade routes. Every manufacturing and commercial segment tended to be regulated by a different societas. Several societas of a single production or commercial process would band together into trusts. And when they needed more capital or an economic boom required a large injection of resources, the Solofra oligarchy would funnel family wealth, dowries, revenues taken by churches, sacred places of the ancient regime and the property holdings into the capitalistic cycle. These families remained seated in power for centuries, unless natural extinction caused their premature demise. The special institution of transfer of inheritance provided that assets transferred in inheritance were tied up for a period of 10 to 15 years and an equal division between male children was made only in the event a new productive enterprise could be founded. These families did not ask for tithes but only recognition of its skills and professionalism. Pride was the currency that accompanied them. The work ethic was a sign of their success. The quality of the job, in the past and present, knew no confines to commitment or market frontiers. Possession of money was a source of pride and a guarantee of production and success. Ephemeral consumption was unknown in the common culture. There were no stone throwers or prodigies and even pure talent was functional to the tanning societas. Money was collective patronage for the churches, works of art and palatial homes that would reflect the standing and prominence of the principal. Tanning was a trade that

3 occupied the mind and daily life of those who created it, an omnivorous secular religion. The extended reproduction of the capital is the greatness of the family name and the multiplication of the tanning storerooms. The Objectives To explore a brand new manufacturing, social and regional model - through iconography, documents, and representation and mock-ups of international interest To circulate and discuss innovative historic and scientific themes - historic discoveries - new archives - new instruments of promotion and publication - highly innovative subject matter To conduct historic research on traditional tanning methods - through iconography, documents, and representation and mock-ups of international interest To revitalize the origins of Solofra history - the origins of its economic wealth - the origins of the manufacturing sector - the origins of the cultural and artistic history To revive Solofra in terms of its manufacturing industry and social and tourist attractions To revive its urban and artistic heritage Solofra Tanning Association Chamber of Commerce of Avellino The Project Team Event promoter: Apotheca Non-profit Association c/o Solofra Municipal Library Largo Marelli, Solofra Scientific Director: Annibale Cogliano

4 Organizational coordinator: Apotheca Annibale Cogliano Luciano de Venezia Alessandro Di Blasi Image, communication, and event design: Studio de Venezia Alessandro Di Blasi Research and iconographic apparatus: Alberto Alfredo Tristano Leoncio Fortunato Nicola Capuano Content and Materials of the Project - Presentation of the show-event - Realization of printed and audiovisual promotional material - Display boards on themes and information from the world of Solofra tanning Index of the boards: Origin and consolidation historic scenario resources: water, woods and countryside. The origins: the Vespro war and foundation of the tanning district between the 1300s and 1400s. Tanning in the 16th century Structure of the Storeroom (Apoteca) Social figures Itinerant markets and trade fairs Raw materials, processing techniques, types of leather Gold leaf, parchment, gold - leather Capital: family and societas at the time; reproduction of the capital by family apportionment or mandatory division of inheritance Capital, family and monasteries Tanning, working age, illnesses Tanning industry and central and municipal political power

5 Tanning industry and the feudal system Tanning industry and the church Tanning, residential models and urban structure The country-home The country-home and the extended family Artistic production Architecture and painting Tanning in the 20th century Tanning between the First and Second World War Tanning in the post-world War II period: new markets and international labour division Tanning in globalization.