The firm Mario Buccellati, located at 4 Via Montenapoleone, is currently run by one of the founder's sons, Lorenzo Buccellati, with the assistance of his wife Claudia. Their objects can be identified by their distinct "texture-engraved" style and the hallmark "15 MI", one of the oldest in Milan. The company was founded by its namesake, the descendant of a renowned family of jewellers which began with a certian Contardo Buccellat in the 18th Century. Mario began his career in 1903 as an apprentice to the goldsmiths Beltrami e Besnati located at the Largo Santa Margherita in the centre of Milan. He eventually took over the business in 1919. In the following years, he opened boutiques in Rome (1925), Florence (1929), and New York (1953). He created jewels for such notables as the Popes Pius XI and XII, as well as the royal families of Italy, Spain and Egypt. Today, in addition to Milan, Mario Buccellati still has boutiques in the via Tornabuoni of Florence and the via dei Condotti of Rome.