The bust of Romania’s most notorious ruler, Vlad Dracula aka "Vlad the Impaler," keeps watch over the ruins of his medieval court.

This once-derelict building is now one of the most beautiful bookstores in the world.

This solitary monastery may hold the remains of Vlad the Impaler (but probably not).

This domed temple was built in a hidden cave mouth as a refuge for sinners seeking absolution.

The ruins of an abbey believed to have been founded by Charlemagne in the 9th century.

Known for centuries as the famous Roman emperor's burial place, this monument is actually something else.

This sword isn't waiting for a king to pull it out. It was placed there by a saint.

These gutted monastery ruins still stand proudly in the middle of the Italian countryside.

A blend of nature and art awaits visitors to this park.

Contains some of the world's more disturbing wax anatomical models.

This unusually shaped fortress houses a blend of centuries-old frescoes and modern art.

This lake was sacred to the Sabine people who constructed a temple here on a floating island.

This caldera was once associated with the Etruscan god of the underworld.

The marshy karst plain has reclaimed this beautiful 17th-century church.

Templar knights fleeing persecution are said to have left this sword in stone as a landmark in 1307.

Wandering this ancient burial place offers a glimpse of the afterlife in the fresco-adorned tombs of an ancient Etruscan civilization.

This seventh-century fortification marked the western border of the Lombard duchy of Spoleto.

Gigantic mosaic sculptures of the figures on Tarot cards fill this colorful Tuscan garden.

Hidden within this iconic mountain are a set of World War II bunkers once used by German forces.

Medieval town turned hippie commune, once home to the secret foreskin of Jesus Christ.

This small hermitage is located along an ancient route that connected the Tiber and Rieti valleys.

This enormous sinkhole hides a secret world created from divine wrath.

This hermitage celebrates the legend of Emperor Constantine's healing from leprosy.

This Roman theater was crafted into the local tuff rock and was rediscovered during the 19th-century.