 Italy is widely known for being the birthplace of opera.Italian opera was believed to have been founded in the early 17th century, in cities such as Mantua and Venice.Later, works and pieces composed by native Italian composers of the 19th and early 20th centuries, such as Rossini, Bellini, Donizetti, Verdi and Puccini, are among the most famous operas ever written and today are performed in opera houses across the world.