"From a high Tuscan hill, fifty miles from Florence between Arezzo and Perugia, rises the equally ancient and noble city of Cortona. Before the city lies a vast and beautiful plain, it is flanked on either side by distant hills and valleys while behind it are towering yet fruitful mountains. Cortona has a picturesque aspect, turned toward the midday sun…” -- Giacomo Lauro. Excerpt from one of the first known guidebooks. Printed in Rome. 1639.