Originally published at National Catholic Register
Close to the Pantheon in the heart of Rome, one of the city’s oldest and most popular ecclesiastical tailors is ready for Saturday’s consistory for the creation of new cardinals.
It wasn’t long after Pope Francis announced that he would be making 21 new cardinals in December that the Gammarelli tailor adjusted its window to feature the traditional dress of cardinals.
“It’s a bit of a historical showcase because not all of these items are still used,” Gammarelli manager Alessia Gammarelli told EWTN News. Gammarelli, with her cousins Lorenzo and Massimiliano, are the sixth generation to run the family business.
Gammarelli explained that while the black cassock with the red piping is still worn by cardinals today, the mantelletta, or knee-length cloak, has fallen out of use.
The red shoes worn by Pope Benedict XVI during his pontificate are also no longer in fashion, but Gammarelli said she likes to include out-of-use clerical wear in the window for historical interest.
Gammarelli tailor shop has made the ecclesiastical garments of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of priests, bishops, and cardinals since it was opened in 1798 by Giovanni Antonio Gammarelli as a tailor for Roman clergy. The red shoes worn by Pope Benedict XVI
