Situated in between via Salaria and viale Regina Margherita is Villa Albani. It’s not visible from these streets save for a brief flash from Regina Margherita.

Villa Albani was built in the 1700s and was the home for many prestigious antiquities. And for this reason was of special interest to the art historian Johann Winckelmann, expert in Neoclassicism, who spent much time here.

Also of interest, it was at Villa Albani that, in 1870, the treaty with the Vatican following the Capture of Rome was signed here. The event marked the beginning of the unification of Italy, a process that took many years and many lives.

When I walk to my studio, I often pass this peek-a-boo sighting of Villa Albani. Walking around is the best way to make such discoveries.