Once a farmhouse, the Casina was remodelled into a neo-classical villa by Valadier. It has terraces, loggias, and columns, and standing in the small square in front of the building is a bust of astronomer Angelo Secchi. Look at this carefully and spot the small hole that is the point where the meridian passes through Rome. It’s now the ‘in-place’ where artists meet but was originally built on a Roman water tank which was used as a hidey-hole during the Sacking of Rome in 1527.