Six generations of the Silvestri family have worked in the statuary industry. In the year 1900, Arcangelo Silvestri and his two brothers moved to San Francisco. They started making plaster of Paris ornamental moulding and figures, which they sold door to door. The kewpie doll was their most popular statue at the time.Until the Great Depression, their business thrived. They returned to Bagni di Lucca, their hometown in the Tuscany region.