History

Culture
by Laura Morelli |
For the residents of an ancient Etruscan settlement, any time the Romans came to town, it could only mean bad news. That’s because, starting in the fourth…
Culture
by Laura Morelli |
The ancient Etruscan people occupied a swath of central Italy stretching roughly between Campania in the south, and the Po River in modern-day Lombardy. Their…
Culture
by Silvia Donati |
The Roman Forum was for centuries the center of Rome’s public life. All important social and political events took place here, from elections to public…
Culture
by Silvia Donati |
Did you know the word ‘quarantine’ comes from Italy?  From Venice to be precise.  “The practice of quarantine, as we know it, began during the 14th…
Culture
by Laura Morelli |
Leonardo da Vinci, The Lady with the Ermine (presumed to be Cecilia Gallerani) 1489-90, oil on panel, Czartoryski Museum, Kraków, Poland 
 In 1482, Leonardo da…
Culture
by Laura Morelli |
In the fall of 1504, 21-year-old Raffaello Sanzio mounted a mule and began winding his way down the mountainous pathsfrom Urbino. At first glance, leaving his…
Culture
by Laura Morelli |
If you’ve heard anything at all about the ancient Etruscans of central Italy, you probably know that they are considered “mysterious.” Countless books, courses…
Travel
by Laura Morelli |
Recently I stood on a windswept hilltop overlooking Urbino, took a picture, and texted my husband. From five thousand miles away, he texted back: “Is that a…
Culture
by Laura Morelli |
The artist Raffaello Sanzio—better known as Raphael—is one of the undisputed masters of the High Renaissance style in Italy. But when you realize that the…
Culture
by Laura Morelli |
Beyond Rome, the landscape of Lazio unfurls in a panorama of fertile fields dotted with cypresses and umbrella pines. Venturing north toward Tuscany, we move…