Continuous stucco and smalto flooring in the former Austrian Lombardy. Sources, techniques and communication

The revival of historic techniques that accompanied the rise of neoclassicism taste is seen in Milan with the choices of its refined aristocratic patrons. In their homes, which were veritable workshops of applied arts, continuous floors were documented. Based on ambiguous contemporary descriptions that identify a plurality of products, continuous floors can be traced as being part of the stucco or smalto categories. Among the workers who experimented with these techniques, Agostino Gerli and his brothers stand out as craftspeople and skilled communicators of their eclectic inventions and work. This knowledge applied to construction was still available in the 19th century as a specific Milanese tradition.