On rare days, this abandoned castle's gatekeepers open its doors, revealing the eye-popping splendor hidden inside.

A fossil of a 30 million-year-old fish is unexpectedly hidden thousands of feet above sea level.

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

Just across from the "Last Supper" painting is the famous painter's vineyard, a gift received for creating the masterpiece.

Famous landmarks and structures from across Italy fill this miniature park.

This Roman amphitheatre was also the location of the first gladiator school.

A haunting collection of sunken wooden barges litters this Italian river bend.

One of the earliest relics of Italian art is this ornately equipped stone soldier.

A founding document of the European Union was written on an island where Roman emperors once banished women.

A two-hour hike in the Orfento Valley leads to the remote ruins.

This old medieval prison tower has been a site of astronomical research for more than 250 years.

Claude Monet immortalized this medieval bridge in two of his paintings.

This small but lovely sinkhole lake is the last remnant of a great prehistoric water basin.

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

A single column facing the sea is all that's left of one of the most important temples of Magna Graecia.

The home of a neoclassical master is now a shrine to his chosen art style.

A beautiful chapel on the hills of the Oltrepò Pavese claims to house the tomb of King Edward II of England.

The oldest scientifically dated tree in Europe lives on a remote cliff.

This precariously perched fortress was once ruled by a crow-worshipping baron.

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

Ever loyal to Roma, the small village of Albe in the Abruzzo region carried on until an earthquake did it in.

The second-highest village in Lazio has attracted artists for 400 years and is now a spectacular open-air art gallery.

An incredible mosaic-lined monument said to have held the remains of an ancient Roman empress.

A mushroom-shaped outcropping that has come to be the symbol for an entire town.