Sitting on an Italian hilltop is this surreal fortress built by the mad inventor of electrohomeopathy.

A royal relic from the time that gambling was accidentally made legal in South Carolina.

This enchanting 600-year-old tree is so magical it inspired the beloved tale of Pinocchio.

Visit a secretive crypt before it crumbles to dust.

Two planes stand abandoned after the closure of an aircraft-themed restaurant.

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

Where mountaineers were checked for lice before entering the city.

In a tower at this centuries-old castle, members of a noble family were imprisoned and left to starve.

Built as a defensive structure, this medieval walkway road offers a unique view of the village of Brisighella.

This sculpture of a rhinoceros suspended above a city square is meant to evoke the weight of the human condition.

A medieval castle was used for centuries as a hemp farm.

Leonardo da Vinci was one of many to find inspiration in this unique, rocky landscape in Tuscany.

On the walking path from Monterosso to Vernazza, a small shrine dedicated to feline friends.

Perched above a grotto, this tribute to Mother Nature looks out into the ocean.

The link between these two seemingly disparate themes is crucial to the history of this Tuscan hill town.

An abandoned piece of phallic art repurposed by locals into a makeshift fertility shrine.

Inside features a display of how artistic crucifixes transformed throughout the centuries.

A great white whale sculpture now sits in the location where the remains of a prehistoric cetacean were found.

In this nearly 1,000-year-old monastery, monks painstakingly restore old books.

This medieval castle was reconstructed by Carlo Scarpa.

This castle was once the home of one of the most powerful women of the Renaissance.

The tomb of the mythological founder of Padua is not hidden in some obscure crypt, but stands right in the middle of the city square.

These elaborate gothic monuments honor Verona's medieval lords.

If you ever wanted to touch a medieval mercenary’s three testicles, look no further.