The Pope’s secret escape route.

This hidden Art Nouveau courtyard is an opulent feast for the eyes.

Legend has it that this bronze orb, which sat atop an ancient Egyptian obelisk, once held the ashes of Julius Caesar.

Installed in an act of one-upsmanship, the annual sundial in this church is also a symbolic victory for the Gregorian calendar.

A fortified medieval basilica on the Caelian Hill preserves extraordinary frescoes and one of Rome's most beautiful hidden cloisters.

This curious, round temple is the oldest still-standing marble building in Rome.

In the early Roman Empire, people deemed traitors and criminals were tossed to their deaths from this rock.

One of Catholicism's four major basilicas has a series of papal portraits that are said to predict the end of the world.

A detailed pachyderm supports Rome's smallest Egyptian obelisk.

This large, circular tomb is the final resting place of the first emperor of Rome.

Roman-era ships unearthed...

The best preserved Paleochristian basilica in Rome hides a number of oddities and secrets.