The history of Modiano is part of a long Trieste tradition in cartography. It was 1759 when in the name of Maria Theresa of Austria the monopoly for the production of playing cards throughout the Adriatic coast was granted to Rafael Marsiglio, who had recently arrived in the city. Several were those who followed his example, including Saul David Modiano , born in Thessaloniki into a family of merchants and arrived in Trieste in 1868 with the aim of developing commercial traffic with the East. Considering the strong demand for cigarette papers in Italy, he decided to start a new industrial activity in the Julian city in this branch, thus starting the production and marketing of the rolling papers line with different brands, including the “CLUB”.
The notoriety of the Modiano grows all over the world, from the Balkans to Japan, from Latin America to the Sunda seas.
In 1884 extends the range of its products, launching a lithograph which made school for fine art and for the production of cards to gioco.In short time playing cards Modiano , thanks to the combination of art, technology and business skills surpass style and quality the European standards traditionally established by Austrians and Germans.
New establishments are set up beyond the urban borders in Romans d'Isonzo, Rijeka and Budapest, where a collaboration with the major artists of the Hungarian university is developed.
On the eve of the Great War, Modiano employs a thousand employees in its factories and its name also emerges among the promoters of Trieste's commercial and industrial development in the cement, electromechanical, agriculture and finance sectors. From these initiatives the first Trieste car industry, “Alba”, was born in 1907. The company begins the diffusion of the billboards that accompany the advertising launch of the products and thus becomes a promoter of Italian signage making use of the contribution of renowned artists such as Orell, Cambon, Sigon, Quaiatti, Cuccoli, Tominz, Thummel, etc. The business continued from generation to generation until 1987, when Modiano was acquired by Grafad, a paper industry already present on the market. Since then the corporate image has been confirmed and relaunched by developing the production of advertising playing cards and expanding the paper industry, always remaining faithful to the classic production line of international and regional playing cards. Modiano today is therefore the synthesis of a great centuries-old tradition and a young spirit aimed at continuous renewal: these are the two faces that each Modiano card exhibits by aiming for the best in quality and winning with every hand. (taken from the official website of Modiano spa)