Assisi was the home of several saints, including Agnes of Assisi, Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows, Rufinus of Assisi, Vitalis of Assisi, Sylvester of Assisi, and St. Francis himself. The pink stones used to build many of the Franciscan buildings were quarried from Monte Subasio, the mountain on which the city was built.

Since the residents of Assisi have continued to hold onto their traditional lifestyles, the town offers so much more. High atop a slope overlooking Assisi is the imposing Rocca Maggiore, an imperial fortress reconstructed by Cardinal Albornoz and expanded by Popes Pius II and Paul III.

Hidden beneath the streets is the Roman Domus of Propertius with its frescoed walls. Archaeologists have also preserved the Domus of Lararium, which sports a marble floor mosaic and a covered port with Pompeian decorations.

Today Italy in general and Umbria in particular are striking places for tourism with unique architecture, a mild climate, and Mediterranean culture. Visitors start with an artist’s view of Assisi, Monte Subasio, and nearby villages. The color photographs in Ancients of Assisi I and Ancients of Assisi II were taken at the Basilica di San Francesco, including the Basilica inferior and the Basilica superior; the Sacro Convento, a Franciscan friary; the Rocca Maggiore, a castle that is 800 years old; Santa Maria Maggiore; the Basilica of Santa Chiara, or Saint Clare; and the Roman Domus of Propertius and the Domus of Lararium, both of which are underground. Page through these books to travel through thousands of years of history.

Prepare yourself for Umbria’s monasteries, cathedrals, ancient stone architecture, winding streets, and lively community nightlight with the color photos in Ancients of Assisi I and Ancients of Assisi II.

The softcover edition uses a single-page layout for an affordable price point. The hardcover edition utilizes a beautiful two-page spread with the photo on the righthand page and the title on the left. Either version makes a great gift.

In the Travel Photo Art series, traditional tourism panoramas mix with arthouse aesthetics. These slim, intense productions are your passport to new perspectives on famous places. Peer around corners and discover a unique way to interact with monuments and memorials you thought you knew.

This popular series includes titles that mix text with the pictures. Books like Notre Dame Cathedral: Our Lady of Paris, featuring photos taken months before the 2019 fire, become keepsakes associated with a specific site. Titles like Lidice Lives and Terezin and Theresienstadt are deeply meaningful for families touched by the Holocaust.

Laine Cunningham, a three-time recipient of The Hackney Award, writes fiction that takes readers around the world. Her debut novel, The Family Made of Dust, is set in the Australian Outback, while Reparation is a novel of the American Great Plains. She is the editor of Sunspot Literary Journal.