Italian history

Italian history for kids

August 30, 2011

“Storia d’Italia narrata ai fanciulli” (“History of Italy told to children”), a poster.

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History of pizza – an important primary source

May 31, 2011

Are you sitting there, wondering where pizza came from? Most culinary books and popular introductions to Italian culture name one Raffaele Esposito as the creator of modern pizza. At the very least, this citizen of Naples supposedly came up with a combination of mozzarella, basil and tomatoes, thus matching the three colors of the Italian […]

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Quotes about Italy and Italians

May 9, 2011

A small selection of quotes about Italy and Italians, in several languages. I will keep adding to this list once I think of or discover new quotes or proverbs. The picture on the left is that of a typical Italian village, by the way. Caput mundi (Latin) – The head of the world (of Rome). […]

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1891 poster – Aristocracy for progress!

April 23, 2011

I really like this poster. The imagery is truly iconic. On the left you  see  large groups of children from lower social strata, lead by a single modestly clad woman, awkwardly leaning forward.  The background is dark and dreary. On the right, a well-dressed lady with a rather aristocratic posture extends an invitation to a […]

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Seven Hills of Rome

April 9, 2011

Here are some images of the famous Seven Hills of Rome. You will need to go two levels down to see the large  images. There are two images of the Esquiline hill, in case you’re wondering why the seven hills are represented by eight pictures… The time period of the images, judging from the Romanticist […]

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Italian government – insider’s insight

January 16, 2011

Although this phrase is sometimes attributed to Benito Mussolini, it was most likely uttered by Giovanni Giolitti (1842 –1928), an Italian statesman who served as Prime Minister of Italy five times. Supposedly, when asked by a journalist whether it was impossible to rule Italy, Giolitti replied, “It is not impossible. It is useless.” For many […]

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Italian leather bags — birth of a legend (or legend of the birth)?

January 13, 2011

I just came across an interesting legend regarding the origins of Italian designer leather bag tradition. It is somewhat puzzling that thus far I cannot find any additional sources for this legend. All I have is an advertisement copy that was published in New York Magazine on Nov 3, 1980. Yet somehow the story rings […]

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