At the base of Pincio hill, there were homes and shops of masons, marble cutters, and coachmen, who conducted their business in the areas. In the Middle Ages an unknown artist opened the first workshop where the finest Roman craftsmen painted portraits, cut marble for fountains and forged metal plates, giving birth to a flourishing industry that attracted foreign artists (including Flemish and German), as well as Italians from other regions. These immigrants gradually replaced the shacks and stables with houses, workshops and gardens.