Coral Museum Ascione

The Ascione Coral Museum is located in one of the most beautiful and prestigious places in Naples . Located on the second floor of the main facade of the Galleria Umberto I, given its extension, it occupies a large part of the facade itself. This allows you to have an exceptional view of some of the most exclusive and historically rich places in the city. The Ascione company is the oldest manufactory in Torre del Greco in the delicate and prestigious sector of the artistic processing of coral , cameo , mother-of- pearl , semi-precious stones and precious metals . In 1855 Giovanni Ascione , son of the owner of “coralline” Domenico, decided to devote himself to the manufacture of coral, an activity imported to Torre del Greco at the beginning of the 19th century. Giovanni and his ten sons managed to make the Ascione brand known for the refinement of their production, so much so that they earned numerous international awards and became suppliers of the royal family which gave them the privilege of embellishing the brand with the insignia of the House of Savoy.

The Museo del Corallo Ascione traces the history of the company through the display of original documents and the most significant creations from the nineteenth century to the modern and contemporary. The museum space is divided into two sections: in the first, of an educational type, coral branches of different origins and types are presented, the ancient fishing systems, the ancient tools for processing, numerous necklaces in various cuts and styles , the markets to which they were and are intended.

A space is also dedicated to the processing of the cameo: the shells, the tools, the processing phases, the finished objects give the visitor a complete and exhaustive picture of this very particular art.

The second section is dedicated to jewelry : more than 300 objects in coral , cameos, lava stone are on display, evidence of a rare and refined production that goes from the early nineteenth century to the 40s of the last century . The itinerary is accompanied by a rich paper and photographic documentation that illustrates the activity of the company and its numerous awards for the quality and originality of its jewels.