Capital Of Silk

The first reason to visit Lyon is that it's the Capital of Silk. The visitor will still find plenty of reminders of Lyon's past as the silk center of Europe. King Louis XI established a national silk industry in Lyon in 1466 that was mostly made up of Italian laborers from the Calabria region, which was renowned for its skilled silk weavers. By the middle of the 17th century, Lyon had more than 14,000 active looms, making it the center of the European silk trade by the 16th century. A third of the city's residents were being fed by the silk industry at this time. There are many relics of this former opulence, including a museum dedicated to silk, workshops to visit, and silk shops brimming with alluring scarves. There are numerous indications that the legacy has survived despite the absence of the silk craftsmen and factory owners. A trip to the city's silk factories is enjoyable and educational.

What better way to indulge yourself than with a scarf or tie from the center of silk production in Europe? The famed Lyonnais silk workers, known as canuts, founded the industry at Croix-Rousse, the neighborhood perched atop the city's northern hill, and some of them are still employed there today. Make careful your research: Buildings here have visibly larger windows and ceilings to accommodate the massive looms in the workers' hybrid factory-homes. Visitors can learn about the lengthy history of the silk industry via exhibits at the Maison des Canuts museum and workshop before observing weavers produce goods using sophisticated methods developed in the 15th century.