Anslo was born at
Amsterdam and brought up a
Mennonite. His family originated from
Christiania, now Oslo (Norway). His mother remarried in 1631. He was baptized in 1646. Early civic fame as a poet came to him in Amsterdam, when he was rewarded by his with a laurel crown and a silver dish for a poem in honour of the foundation stone of the new town hall in 1648. In 1649 he travelled to Rome with Arnout Hellemans Hooft (1629-1680), the son of
P.C. Hooft; they arrived in November 1651. In December 1651 he was received into the
Catholic Church, together with forty-three others, as is shown by manuscript records of the
Society of Jesus. He proceeded to Rome, where he became secretary to Cardinal
Luigi Capponi, and received from
Pope Innocent X a gold medal for his poetical labours. In 1655 he was presented to Queen
Christina of Sweden, to whom he dedicated new poems. A poem entitled
De Zweedsche Pallas ("The Swedish Pallas"), brought him a golden chain. He died at
Perugia. ==Works==