THE LAST MAESTROS OF Sartoria Ciardi

Over the past century, the master tailors of Naples have become among the most renowned in the world. Today, without an urgent effort by younger generations to preserve the dying craft, Italy's legendary tradition could go extinct.

- JOSHUA HUNT

A BALMY MORNING in June, I arrived early for my appointment with Mariano Rubinacci, whose atelier overlooks cobbled streets that stitch together the very small, very exclusive world of bespoke Neapolitan tailoring. Perched above a flagship store selling shirts and ties, his sartoria, or tailoring shop, is located in the 16th-century Palazzo Cellamare. The Bay of Naples is close enough to perfume its entrance with each gust of wind blown inland from the Mediterranean Sea; inside, the dewy summer air mingles with the smell of good coffee, fine fabric, and old money. Naples is Italy's third-largest city, but in tailoring it is second to none. Those who doubt this can check the paperwork: In an ornate frame hanging on the wall of Rubinacci's salon is a weathered document from 1941 addressed to his father, Gennaro, from the Prince of Piedmont, appointing him as clothier to Italy's royal family.