An Italian ghost town that fought obscurity, until a mysterious illness brought it to its knees.

This Roman arch marks the location of an ancient gate at one of the Seven Hills of Rome.

This ancient Roman prison is decorated with an upside-down cross not as blasphemy but as saintly tribute.

Venice's island of the dead.

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

One of several skulls claiming to belong to the beheaded St. John the Baptist is on display at this Roman church.

This ritzy Italian market is built around a statue of an unforgiven heretic who was burned for his belief in an endless universe.

A Nesting Doll of Churches.

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

Where Aleister Crowley taught magick in "La Chambre Des Cauchemars," his "Chamber of Nightmares."

Pilgrimage site for star-crossed lovers.

This quaint Italian town keeps losing ground as the sides of its plateau slowly erode.

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

Five candy-colored villages on the Italian Riviera.

Jesus' footprints and the first catacombs in the world.

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

The once forbidden "secret cabinet" of erotic art from excavations of Pompeii and Herculaneum.

2300-year-old Roman road connecting the empire.

Rome's semi-secret peephole vista is also a former Crusader stronghold.

Thousands of well-dressed mummies below a monastery.

Pompeii's less famous neighbor is still revealing her secrets.

Architectureal fantasy quarter of Rome.

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

A small island less than half a mile from Venice is a forbidden island with a dark and twisted past.