“M. Cilento & F.llo” was founded in Naples in 1780 and is among the most important establishments in the world of Italian fashion. It is listed in the registry of Italian brands of historic national interest as nominated by the Ministry of Economic Development. Its long history is documented through numerous artefacts preserved in its archives which have been declared by the Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Tourism for the Campania region to be of particular importance and designated for cultural preservation.

The company’s archives dates back to 1780, the year of its founding, and in its two hundred and thirty-three year history has accumulated and preserved a rich historical and cultural collection of antique haberdashery furnishings including counters and display cases, sartorial work tools such as scissors, measuring tapes and squares used in bespoke tailoring, period collars and cuffs, fabric samples and design sketches, fabrics for suits and silks for ties, historic invoices and commercial documents, extensive correspondence regarding the purchase and sale of the famous Palena cloths dating from 1820, wooden boxes, travel bags for transporting fabrics, irons and tie presses, suits and footwear from past eras, antique mannequins, vintage fabrics, and a collection of business cards from many famous buyers and much more.

The Milan premises, the great recovery of the historical Antica Farmacia di Brera fonded in 1812 and of the Antica Spezieria di Brera from 1591, has brought together the precious collection of another large Italian cultural heritage consisting of ancient pharmacy relics belonging to Carlo Erba and related documentation, antique packaging of the historic pills of Brera and of the Elixir of China, and documents attesting to the frequenting of the Milanese premises of such illustrious figures as Alessandro Manzoni, a fine appreciator of Milanese pharmaceutical remedies, and many more famous personages.