Agrippa finished the construction of the building called the Pantheon. It has this name, perhaps because it received among the images which decorated it the statues of many gods, including Mars and Venus; but my own opinion of the name is that, because of its vaulted roof, it resembles the heavens.
— Cassius Dio, History of Rome
I have the privilege to handcraft the leather purses and briefcases of my collection right behind the Pantheon.
These days, because of the COVID-19, the centre of Rome is so empty… the Pantheon too.
It is so weird and it saddens me to open my boutique in the morning without the usual crowd of mesmerized tourists walking and wondering about the splendor of the ancient Rome.
That’s why I decided to start this new online adventure: if you can’t come here in Rome, I will come to you bringing Rome with me.
Riccardo Mancini (Mancini Leather Boutique & Lab, Via della Palombella 28, Rome)