Palestrina is a town not far from Rome, at the foot of Mount Ginestro. Here, the Sanctuary of Fortuna Primigenia (or Fortune of the First Born) was built in the 2nd century BC: inspired by the monumental complexes in the eastern Aegean Islands, today it is considered one of the most relevant examples of Hellenistic architecture in Italy.

In its day, it was a place of worship famous across the Roman world, where the faithful would come to consult the gods through what Cicero called “sortes” – where oracles’ answers were extracted by a young boy from a sacred well.