GENOA.

59

some of the elder women wear square linen veils trimmed withcoarse lace. 80

“ That decayed city, Genoa, makes much lace, but inferior tothat of Flanders,” states Anderson, in his “ Origin of Commerce,”1764.

Savary, speaking of the Genoa manufacture, says: “ As regardsFrance, these points have had the same lot as those of Veniceruined by the act of prohibition.”

In 1840, there were only six lace-sellers in the city of Genoa.The women work in their own houses, receiving materials andpatterns from the merchant, who pays for their labour. 81

Lace, in Genoa, is called “pizzo.” “ Punti in aco” were notmade in this city. The points of Genoa were all the work of thepillow, “ a piombini,” 82 or “ a mazzetta,” as the Italians term it,of fine handspun thread brought from Lombardy. Silk wasprocured from Naples. Of this Lombardy thread is the magnificentcollerette of which we give an example (Fig. 29). This was theGenoa point par excellence, and is still known by this appellation.The old Genoa point still finds favour in the eyes of the clergy,and on fete days, either at Genoa or Savona, may be seen splendidlace decorating the “ camicie ” of the ecclesiastics.

The barristers of Genoa retain as a part of their costumefalling bands of rich lace.

The lace manufacture extends along the coast from Albissola,on the western Riviera, to Santa Margherita, on the eastern. SantaMargherita and ltapallo are called by Luxada 83 the emporium ofthe lace industry of Genoa. The workers are mostly the wivesand daughters of the coral-fishers, who support themselves by thisoccupation during the long and perilous voyages of their husbands.In the archives of the parochial church of Santa Margherita is pre-served a book of accounts, in which mention is made, in the year1592, of gifts to the church, old nets from the coral fishery, togetherwith pissetti (pizzi); the one a votive offering of some successfulfishermen, the other the work of their wives or daughters, given in

80 “Letters from Italy,” 1770.

81 Cavaseo, “ Statistique de Genes,”1810 .

82 The bobbins appear to have beenmade in Italy of various materials. AVehave “ merletli a fusi,” in which casethey are of wood. The Sforza inventorygives, “ a duii fuxi,” two bobbins; then,

“ a ossi,” of bone ; and, lastly, “a piom-bini and it is very certain that lead wasused for bobbins in Italy, probably forweaving some kind of coarse guipure.Seo Parasole (1600).

88 “ Memorie Storicho di Santa Mar-gherita.”