The Classicist: Caracalla Bagaglio Commemorative Motorsport Collection

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed)
Apr 26th 2010 at 9:01AM

Simon Jordan takes his supercars seriously. He is the director of Cortese, an independent Ferrari and Maserati showroom located in Bath, UK on the Priston Mill Estate, where you can pick up an F430, Testarossa or GranSport as well as classic and racing models. It also houses his vast collection of Ferrari and Maserati memorabilia, including a library of books, pictures and models dating back to 1947. For Jordan, thoroughbred automobiles are a way of life. Hence he has also created Caracalla Bagaglio, a line of Italian leather goods designed to complement the world's greatest cars. The line takes its name from the Terme di Caracalla race circuit in Rome, where Ferrari won its first race in 1947, and its main range is the Commemorative Motorsport Collection featuring leather bags and holdalls dedicated to pivotal moments in racing history.

Skilled artisans hand make each bag in Tuscany from the finest leather in a process of craftsmanship passed down over generations. Each piece relates to the history of famous race car marques, drivers and racing numbers, and are endorsed by racing legends such as Sir Stirling Moss, Niki Lauda and Emerson Fittipaldi. Each piece closely matches the color (interior or exterior) and racing livery of the car it's designed to celebrate. The Moss No. 7 bag (priced at £295) for example, commemorates Sir Stirling Moss's victory at Goodwood in 1961 driving the legendary Ferrari 250 SWB bearing the number 7, Moss' favorite. Finished in dark blue leather to match the original paintwork it features Moss' official signature embossed into the white center panel, and Moss himself owns one of the bags.

Gallery: Caracalla Bagaglio Motorsport Collection

JPS Fittipaldi No. 6 (1972 'Type 72' Lotus F1)

Cortese 56 (1947-2007 Ferrari 60th Anniversary)

Other examples include the JPS Fittipaldi No. 6, in black with gold stitching, echoing the Formula 1 Lotus Type 72 with John Player Special livery driven to victory by Brazilian Emerson Fittipaldi in the 1972 Italian F1 Grand Prix. It features the official Classic Team Lotus logo embossed into a leather panel. The Niki Lauda No. 12 (pictured above) commemorates the Ferrari 312T driven to victory in Formula 1 at Monza in 1975. The Jaguar LM No. 20 in British Racing Green pays homage to the 1951 Le Mans 24 Hour race where Jaguar's XK120 C emerged victorious. And the Porsche LM No. 37 in classic black was created to celebrate Porsche's 1st Le Mans win in its class with the 550 Spyder in 1955, driven by Richard von Frankenberg, Helmut Polensky and Josef Jeser.

Tags: bags, Caracalla Bagaglio, Ferrari, Italy, Jaguar, Le Mans, leather, leather goods, leathergoods, Lotus, Maserati, motor racing, motorsports, Porsche, racecar, racing, Simon Jordan, Sir Stirling Moss, Stirling Moss, supercar, Tuscany, UK