Lago di Como's aspiring silk makers still learn their trade in the 1970s-built Istituto Tecnico Industriale di Setificio textile technical school. It's also home to the Museo della Seta, which draws together the threads of the town's silk history. Early dyeing and printing equipment features amid displays that chart the entire fabric production process.
Explanations start with the humble silkworm and how it is raised (no longer the case in Italy, which these days imports raw silk mainly from China) through to the creation of bundles and reels of silk, and on to the dyeing and production of finished products.
