Three Layer Cake

When buying vintage pieces, especially in Italy, it is best to make sure you have done sufficient research and know your price points.  Look at past auction prices, taking note of the condition of the pieces as well as their prices.  Although it is never polite to haggle over posted prices and ask for discounts, in the case of vintage (or just not new) pieces, there is always room for bargaining.  Never be afraid to make a counter offer and stick to it, as long as your offer is fair, justified and not offensively low.  The dealers know how much they paid for it and know how much it’s worth, so if your price is reasonable, they will usually come down close to it.  This is a general rule.  (And generally, when I come across a dealer who does not have posted prices and refuses to negotiate, I do not buy.  It is not unusual to find “personalized” pricing in Italy.  A seller decides how much they think you can afford and sets the price on the spot.  You may find that for a “rich foreigner on vacation” a price is twice as much or more than it would be for a “regular Italian”--  this is not the case with the shops listed here.)  If, on the other hand, you’ve found something that is really a good deal, don’t wreck it by trying to haggle over the price.  Just buy it and be happy.

 
The Top Five

 
Lamps’60
Via Alvise Cadamosto 4/6(area Piramide)
Tel.: +39.065754164
 
If you’re looking for any vintage pieces in Rome from the 50s to the 70s, start with Lamps ’60.  Lamps ’60 is the progression of what started out in 1999 as a flea market stand and weekend hobby for Camilla and partner Fabrizio.  Over time their expertise grew as did their stock, and they set up shop full time.  Not located in the historic city center, but on a residential side street, Lamps ’60 has two small window front shops and one large store room.  They exhibit at the most important Italian vintage fairs, and have top quality mid-20^th century lamps as well as furniture.  Their pieces are priced to sell (read honest) and they really know their stuff.  (If you have a sweet tooth, take a fifteen minute walk up via Ostiense to Andreotti pastry shop and have any of their pastries, preferably their mimosa di fragole.  Otherwise, go behind Piramide to via Marmorata to the heart of Testaccio, and have a look in Volpetti, Rome’s answer to Zabar’s, (or for quick eating, go to Volpetti Tavola Calda around the corner.  To sit down and dine, try da Felice just a few blocks down from Volpetti’s tavola calda.) 

MCM’900
Vicolo del Cedro 10 (area Trastevere)
Tel.:+39.06065815620
 
Marco Ancona and partner M. Clelia Mazzanti specialize in vintage pieces from the mid 1940s to the 1970s, excluding art deco (known as “Liberty” in Italy).  Their two-story shop is deep within Trastevere and is well-stocked with gallery quality pieces, including lamps, vases, and furniture.  Both Marco and Clelia are well-versed in the periods they cover, well-respected, and known for their quality.  (After you finish here, take a stroll through Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere, across viale Trastevere to via dei Genovesi to Le Mani in Pasta.  A small restaurant featuring handmade pastas and great semifreddos, reservations are pretty much required.  Closed Mondays.) 

Babuino Novecento
Via del Babuino 65 (Piazza di Spagna)
Tel.: +39. 0636003853
 
Gaetano Pesce tables, Venini vases, Olivier Mourgue’s Djinn chairs to name a few.  The highest quality original mid-century pieces around, many of which Italian in origin.  These are not flea market finds, they are serious investments.  Their prices are high, but their merchandise is of superior quality.  Please say hi to Clara, the young Jack Russell Terrier who ‘guards’ the shop.  (Afterwards, for a refined, high-quality meal, stop at  Op.Là in via Brunetti.) 

Ilario Scaringella
Ponte Milvio the first Saturday and Sunday of each month, or by appointment
Tel.: +39.06.87188489
ilario.scaringella at fastwebnet dot it

Ilario Scaringella restores furniture in his east Rome storeroom and workshop.  He specializes in art deco and pieces through the 1960s from France, sometimes England and Italy.  His collections focus around office furniture and wood side chairs.  Cordial and professional, he stands behind his work, and should any of his restorations fail, he will repair it free of charge.  (Or at least he did for me when we broke a chair at my birthday party!). 

Maurizio de Nisi
Via Panisperna (near via dei Serpenti)
Tel.: +39.064740732

Unlike the other stores in this group, I have never visited nor bought from them, so alack and alas I have nothing to write, but he comes highly recommended from the other dealers, so why not have a look?
 

Others

Antonella Petraglia
Via dell’Arancio, 45
Tel. 06 6830.7829
antonellapetraglia at libero dot it 

This small shop has a varied mix of vintage pieces from the 20^th century, from no named designers.  These pieces are sourced from retailers as well, making the prices generally high and inflexible.  However, it’s worth dropping in from time to time to see if there is anything interesting.  (Have a bistecca Fiorentina followed by crema Catalan two doors down at Settimio al Arancio.  Ask for one of Antonio’s tables.) 

Retrò
Piazza del Fico 20/21 (Piazza Navona)
tel. 06.68192746
info at retrodesign dot it 

Vintage pieces from the 1940s through the 1970s, primarily foreign (Danish, American, European, not many Italian) pieces.  Three sisters own the shop, two of whom are responsible for buying.  This is sticker shock at its finest.  If you thought the price of an object had one fewer digit the last time you saw it than the sticker displayed in this shop, you’re probably right.  The sisters source their pieces in England, at an exchange rate disadvantage, and probably from retailers, not auctions or private sellers.  To their credit, their pieces are in good shape and they do admit that their prices are not at all competitive.  If you just have to have it and money is no object, or you sometimes can’t tell the difference between the value of a re-edition and an original piece and you don’t really care, Retrò should be at the top of your list.  (For a quick, cheap Roman thin crust pizza, stop at Pizzeria da Francesco pizzeria across and to the right of the shop.)