The Ancona chicken is an old breed of chicken that has, historically, enjoyed popularity throughout the world. The Ancona chicken is well known for its moderate temperament and great egg laying abilities. The Ancona hails from Italy and was imported into England back in the late 1800's. They are a very common breed in Italy and can be found all over the country, being concentrated more towards the center of the peninsula. They have a very mixed background and have been found to be very sturdy, healthy animals, sustaining a strong bloodline. They are very avid breeders and multiply in large numbers, hence their large population size and common status in Italy. The Ancona has also enjoyed much popularity throughout the globe. They are able to adapt to a wide range of temperatures and are able forage for food very well. Heavily used in many parts of America and Europe for egg laying, the Ancona chicken has proven to be a hardy, desirable breed for anyone interested in keeping chickens for fun and profit. The Ancona has a beautiful black plumage that is decorated with white tips. This pattern lends to a mottled appearance. There are two common varieties of Ancona, the Rose Comb and Single Comb. The standard weights for the Ancona are as follows: pullets should be four pounds, cockerels are five pounds, cocks are six pounds, and hens are four and a half pounds. The Ancona chicken has something of an interesting namesake. They are named "Ancona" for the city they were originally shipped from, the port city Ancona in Italy. They were received as "mottled leghorns" or "black leghorns", because they so resembled leghorns yet did not share their natural color scheme. To this day, Ancona chickens are referred to as "mottled leghorns" although they have been officially classified as Ancona chickens. The Ancona was introduced to the United States well over 100 years ago, however, today they are relatively rare in US production lines. | 
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