Casolla Giovanni ^©  

(Napoli, 1777)

Literature:
Ref. Elio e Corrado Catello, Argenti napoletani dal XVI al XIX secolo, 1973, p. 108-116, p. 129.

Treccani encyclopaedia under the entry CASOLLA, Giovanni (translated): "He was born in Naples on September 19, 1777, to Francesco, a silversmith, and Angela D'Amore. On March 18, 1818, upon the proposal of the Conservatory of Goldsmiths, he was appointed to the "burò di garanzia" (Guarantee Bureau), which had been established in the early 19th century based on the French model. His role was to provide a unified hallmarking service for the entire Kingdom of Naples to ensure the quality of locally produced silver.
In May 1821, he married the daughter of silversmith Luigi Mazzola, and in the same year, he submitted a plan for a more modern organization of the Guarantee Bureau workshops. Ten years later, in 1831, Fortunato Tuccio, an official at the Royal Mint, praised him as one of the finest silversmiths in the city.
Among the numerous secular objects preserved in private collections, a grand centerpiece, created by him between 1823 and 1832 and measuring 3.50 meters in length, deserves special mention. It consists of three parts that can be combined in different ways, allowing for a reduced-size version using only the end sections. Crafted using traditional techniques, it is a splendid example of monumental Neoclassical silverwork (see Catello, pp. 336 ff.).
Between 1834 and 1836, he produced the altar frontal for the main altar of the Cathedral of Salerno. The frontal, weighing 145 pounds, is divided into five panels by elegant columns. On the larger central panel is depicted the Last Supper, flanked by the Assumption of the Virgin and Saint Matthew, the cathedral's patron. At the two ends are the coats of arms of the commissioning bishops, Arcangelo Lupoli and Marino Paglia".