The town of Anticoli Corrado is located in the Aniene Valley northeast of Rome. It stands on a rocky outcrop at the foot of Ruffi mountains where the inhabitants of the valley had fled to escape the incursions of the Barbarians. The name is supposed to mean 'in front of the hills' - "Fundus Antikuis" and dates back to about 1000. The ‘Corrado’ suffix, however, comes as a tribute to the lord Corrado of Antioch, grandson of Frederick II of Swabia.
The area came unexpectedly into the limelight in the early 1800s as a result of some painters who had come to Italy in search of light and landscapes. From northern Europe many artists arrived in the countryside of Rome and a select group chose Anticoli Corrado as a magical place for the beauty of its women. The town came alive with about 50 artists' studios and its women were portrayed in many paintings that today are in the best museums.
For this, Anticoli is known as "The town of artists and models". Anticoli was a place loved by painters like Kokoschka, Felice Carena and writers such as Luigi Pirandello, Ignazio Silone and Rafael Alberti.
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