The Antiques Fair

The antiques fair of Arezzo is very famous by now. This old event is held on the first Sunday of every month and the Saturday before, in the city centre. It’s a real and proper market exhibition where the finest antiques dealers of the area and the whole of Italy meet to display their wares. There are also the more modest sellers of “things of the past” who collect dusty boxes from people’s attics and find objects with an indefinite style, but connected to the uses and tastes of the past; these traders can be seen making lively negotiations in their stands. The Fair is attended by many operators in the sector who come here to do good deals and obtain regular information on the most recent market developments. But the Fair is also attended by many visitors who are more attracted by the folkloristic aspect of the event rather by a real interest in antiques. Corso Italia, formerly Borgo Maestro, and the loggias by Vasari in Piazza Grande form the backdrop to the Fair and contribute towards recreating an extremely suggestive atmosphere. The buildings, the streets, and the very objects on show transmit the sensation of a leap back in time, when markets like these were important events in the social life of the city and the surrounding area. And it’s easy to let yourself be carried away by the festive and friendly atmosphere where the exhibitors are happy to chat with visitors. Once a year, the Antiques Fair is combined with that of antique photographic material. On this occasion one can still find old bellows cameras on tripods and a large variety of cameras and lenses that are no longer produced, most of them still in perfect working order.

(Portions of this article first appeared in "Toscana & Chianti News")
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