Five sultans and their families rest in eternal splendor, teeming with overlooked beauty and drama.

This famous city eluded concrete detection until the early 2000's.

A marvel of Byzantine engineering under the streets of Istanbul.

Roman ruins top white travertine terraces formed by ancient hot springs.

The courtyard of this small Marinid madrasa is a dazzling example of intricate Islamic architecture.

The oldest known university in the world is in Fez, Morocco.

Traditional 11th-century outdoor tannery.

Thousands of narrow alleyways in an ancient medieval city make up what's believed to be the world's largest car-free urban zone.

Mosaics, storks, and brothels—this ancient city has it all.

In its continuing quest to recreate famous parts of the world in miniature, China now has its own ghost Paris.

This smaller cousin of the Forbidden City has gone from ancestral sacrifice to tourist's whispers.

The most famous location in China was home to whole dynasties worth of imperial rulers.

The powerful party began with a secret meeting in this shikumen in 1921.

A son-and-daughter meat market, hawked by mom and dad.

An collection of Chinese propaganda posters from 1949 to 1979.

Rivers of cattle blood gone, a strange Escheresque building remains, the last of its kind.

This psychedelic tourist trap is a leisurely descent into madness.

This restored eighth-century palace is a shining example of ancient Umayyad architecture.

Perched above the bustling town of Kerak is a sprawling, ruinous castle that has witnessed nearly a millennia of Levantine history.

The world's oldest map of the holy land gives us a fragmented glimpse of the layout of biblical nations.

The most gigantic, swoony, intimidating trio of fingers in all of antiquity.

Gladiators battle and chariots race daily in the ruins of a once-great Roman city.

A more chill but no less fascinating version of the famous ancient archeological site.

An ancient capital city that dates back 3,000 years old and harbors many surprises.