The Castelli majolica.
Castellian ceramic art, which became famous in the sixteenth century, appears to have extremely antique origins. It was probably the Benedictine monks, before the Valle Siciliana feudatories, who first introduced glazed ceramics around the 12th century.
However, the present centre of Castelli has only developed as a town, and thus economically, since the fifteenth century. The early production of "engobed and engraved" ceramic and the archeological digs carried out in the drains of the antique kilns confirm the growth of an industrial-type system which was already widespread in the first half of the 15th century.
The engobing technique, which consisted of a coating of ceramic bisque using an earthy liquid dough which was then coloured and "graffito" (engraved), was soon followed by the majolic production. This differed from the first in that an expensive glaze was applied to the bisque thus appealing more to wealthy clients. Right from the start, the production methods, which combined economy and quality with innovative techniques, made Castelli one of the most renowned and esteemed centres of the Renaissance. The use of engobing, for example, under the enamel meant the majolica was much whiter and consequently less enamel was needed. The particular technique of the "breathing" oven, recently studied by researchers at the C.N.R. (National Research Council), led to a marked reduction in the use of wood because the fumes given off were used again in the combustion process. The simple but genial solution of painting only the outward-face of pharmacy pots or others used for show whilst leaving the backs quickly but effectively decorated halved the time it took to produce them. Finally, the plentiful supply of wood, clay and water necessary to mill the stanniferous powder for the enamel were all characteristic of the economy of a place which, today, would seem too far from the markets, cut off from present means of communication and incredibly isolated amongst the mountains. Nevertheless, already at the beginning of the 16th century, Castelli had overcome its phase of imitating Umbrian products and was creating its own iconographic and morphological collection directed at high level buyers in a European market.

The spread of Castelli's great fame in the 16th century is attested to by Antonio Bueter, who, in his book, Cronica generale di Spagna (General Chronicle of Spain), when talking about some famous Moorish majolica production, wrote: "According to Pliny, Corebo, the inventor of working clay, whilst in Athens, did not make them any better neither were they any more valuable than those of Corinth or Pisa, nor those of Castelli of the Valle Siciliana d'Abruzzo or anywhere else, neither were they more beautiful or better crafted".
That must have been the case if the Aragona, Orsini, Farnese and other noble families of the day commissioned their everyday and most elegant dinner services from the Castelli ceramists. At least eleven families collaborated together with numerous workers at Castelli. The richest and most important of these was the Pompei family, creators of the famous "Orsini-Colonna" collection commissioned to celebrate peace made between the two farmilies. They also created part of the "Farnese tableware" with the famous "turchine" in gold. One should not, however, imagine, as romantics would, dark workshops with a solitary figure, the master craftsmen, intent on his masterpiece. On the contrary, these were authentic industries organized into sections and outbuildings from the search for clay, wood and other materials to the kneading, lathing and the first baking, finishing with the painting, which was only started off by the master craftsman to then be reproduced by his helpers. The final baking then established the colours and lastly carne the glaze. It was, therefore, a whole series of craftsmanship which required quite different but highly specialised skilled workers supervised by the master craftsman himself. Together with the production there was the commercial side which was controlled by different members of the family. They supervised all the operations necessary to participate in fairs and markets, both nearby and far away, organizing the loads, hampers and mules used for transportation as well as the equipment needed for the journey.

In the 18th century the economy flourished again and Castellian production revived although it had to compete against porcelain now being produced in Europe. This was another occasion where strategic choices, which today would be called "marketing", were able to bring the Castelli majolica to the attention of the European market. It was particularly the comeback of the "historiated" style (from "historia"), and landscapes, inspired by an almost canvas like concept of the object, as though it were a background to be painted on, which put the product high above any technological competition from porcelain, which concentrated on imitating oriental models and decorations.
Thus majolica established itself in a new way on the market. Together with the historiated ceramics, a more modest production was set up which -imitated the porcelain themes. This was designed mostly for local buyers and especially the new bourgeois class which was arising at that time. During the next century, thanks to the technical introduction of new colours, red amongst them, this production underwent a stylistic evolution with the typical "floracci" (big flowers). As had happened in the 16th century with the Pompei family, 17th century and especially 15th century Castelli production was characterized by the works of art of another great family of majolic producers: the Grue family. Landscapes, sea-scapes, hunting scenes and animals, battles, Biblical and mythological scenes would appear, one after the other, alternating the classical colours of yellow, green, sky-blue and orange. Whilst everywhere else art was in decline already, here it was reaching its peak; in the middle of the l8th century there were 35 factories and 5000 hampers of majolica were sent to the fair of Senigallia which, together with those sent to the fairs of Fermo and Loreto, earned more than 30.000 scudos.

This production continued to the beginning of the 19th century with Gesualdo Fuina who specialized in decorations which were very like miniatures. Today, in the most important museums in the world, it is possible to admire the works of art made for European noble families in four centuries of Castellian history: from the hermitage in St. Petersburg to the Louvre in Paris and from the Victoria and Albert Museum in London to the Metropolitan Museum in New York.
Or, one can visit the Castelli ceramic museum situated in the cloisters of an ancient convent just outside the town where display boards show the working methods and fragments discovered during archeological research. One kilometre from the town stands the ancient icona (as small churches were once called), of San Donato whose modest appearance is deceptive as, on entering the church, one cannot help admiring the trussed ceiling entirely decorated with sixteenth century polychrome bricks with coats-of-arms, arabesques, human figures and animals painted on ceramic. For enthusiasts there is a splendid book available and the catalogue of an international exhibition held a few years ago which summarize the studies and multi-disciplinary research which has been carried out for years on the Renaissance production of this centre. Furthermore, soon the famous Acerbo Collection will also be at the Castelli museum. This Collection, based at Loreto Aprutino, is one of the largest private collections of majolica and will, at last, be open to the public-again.

At 17 kms from the S. Gabriele exit on the Teramo - L'Aquila motorway, Castelli has easy access to the coast (45 minutes by car), and to Rome (a drive of about two hours on the motorway). Its position, at an altitude of 500 metres, under the picturesque barrier of the Monte Camicia, makes it a good starting point to cross over and ascend the woodland-covered eastern face of the Gran Sasso group of mountains in the new National Park.
The mother church must be visited, where a 13th century wooden polychrome, the majolic altar-piece by Francesco Grue (1647), and a medieval silver cross of the Sulmona school have been preserved. In August, a large market exhibition of current ceramic production is set up but it is possible to wander around the streets of the town anytime of the year and come across numerous craft shops and stores. Prices vary greatly depending on the type and decoration, the choice ranging from simple rustic-like crockery with the typical "floracci", to the most refined imitations of antique collections maybe even decorated in pure gold. Monogrammed dinner-services can also be ordered or particular objects commissioned and decorated to one's own personal taste, thus making the most of the workmanship of the craftsman. Among the road out of the town and down into the valley one comes across the factories which produce mainly for markets abroad.