The story is intertwined with the contemporary in this little shop that resists time just like its products.
Weaving together baskets is probably one of the oldest activities in human history, and Vecchia Cesteria is one of the oldest basketries in Milan: if math is not an opinion, the baskets made here are probably very close to the primordial idea of a basket.
Photo by Alice Gemignani
The history of Vecchia Cesteria starts in 1904, the year the first Casa del Popolo di Milano was built, a complex of buildings around Via Petrella where the evacuees from the surrounding area were hosted. In the courtyard of that complex there were stables, a blacksmith, a locksmith, the coalmen, the laundresses, and the basket-maker with his barrow. None of these activities survived over time, we can read on Cesteria’s website, except the basketry: a piece of tradition in a neighborhood that has evolved and completely changed in the past Century.
Photo by Alice Gemignani
Sure enough, carrying the responsibility of representing the craftsmanship of the beginning of the Nineteenth Century, the basketry has kept its style and its wicker-offers unchanged. If you look close enough, however, among all those baskets there are some new proposals: Milan is now a bit more bike-friendly, and here you can find a variety of bicycle baskets so beautiful that you would need to think twice before parking your bike. On top of that, the managers of this old school gem have a truly contemporary approach to the world: the basketry has its own website, a Facebook page and a Twitter profile to keep you updated on all baskety news.
Photo by Alice Gemignani
LA VECCHIA CESTERIA
Via Benedetto Marcello 93, Milano
☎︎ 02 2940 0214
Aperto
Tue-Sat 9–18
Metro M2 Caiazzo
Tram 1 Via Settembrini
Bus 60, 81 Via Benedetto Marcello
Bus 90, 92 Caiazzo
