This palatial spiral staircase was so unusual the name "snail" was given to the noble family who built it.

According to tradition this is the oldest church in Venice, but its actual age is a mystery.

Stare out over the lagoon and beyond from this 10th-century campanile on the island where the city of Venice began.

This community on a small Venetian island has taken to painting their houses in bright neon hues.

Venice's island of the dead.

The pile of books behind the dignified writer gave the statue a most undignified nickname.

Those who own or stay at this 500-year-old, allegedly cursed house often meet terrible fates.

Go inside to really appreciate this 500-year-old technological masterpiece.

Legend has it this fountain built to symbolize the Pope’s power hides a strange secret concerning Neptune's manliness.

Over 100 towers were built in Bologna during the Middle Ages, but only 22 survive.

A small window on Via Piella offers a lovely and rare peek at Bologna's lost canals.

Historic fortifications form the boundary of Vatican City, but it’s not entirely surrounded by walls.

Breathtaking and huge 430 year old maps of Italy.

This is the oldest Roman-made bridge in the city still existing in its original state.

The ruins of the largest gladiatorial school in Rome are largely hidden under modern streets.

Nobles would stage mock naval battles on this large lake at the Royal Palace of Caserta.

A labyrinth of ancient tunnels hidden below the city holds the ruins of 2,500 years of history.

Ancient snack bar of the Roman Empire re-opened.

The walls and streets of the ancient city are peppered with penises.

Erotic art covers the walls of the largest ancient pleasure palace.

The last moments of the ill-fated Pompeiians, frozen forever in plaster.

This tiny islet has somehow housed an ancient temple, two monasteries, a church, a fortress, and a restaurant.

An Italian crevasse filled with abandoned buildings gives visitors a look at the world without humans.

This clifftop arch is a natural stunner.