“oooo – ahhhh!”—An old sign that caught our eye

G. Facco Meccanica Agricola-Industriale. Alexander Trubin is standing at the right. Photograph by Paul Shaw 2012.

Detail of G. Facco sign. Photograph by paul Shaw 2012.

When Maureen sent me her memory of the 2012 Legacy of Letters tour with the anecdote about an old sign, I was unable to recall it. However, in searching through unlabeled photographs from the tour taken by Patricia Vining, I found some for a business called G. Facco Meccanica Agricola-Industriale. It seemed to be what Maureen was talking about. But it was only when I found other photographs by Alexander (Sasha) Trubin and myself that I was able to confirm G. Facco was indeed the old sign we had all been swooning over. The clinching evidence were two photographs: one I took of the facade which included Sasha also taking a photograph of it; and one by Sasha of our van and car drivers chatting with Alta while waiting for us to finish geeking out.

From left to right: Tim Chambers (partly visible), David shields, Paul shaw, the car driver, an unidentified man, Alta price, and the van driver. Photograph by Alexander Trubin 2012.

G. Facco is apparently no longer in business. The building is located at Via Ca’ Nave 2 in Cittadella.