The only museum with its curator—and her pets—buried inside.

It’s said this crypt was the setting for the tragic finale of the Shakespeare play.

The oldest church in Mantua was buried for centuries under the facades of other structures.

The final resting place of the famous violinist, after his corpse was denied a proper Catholic burial for decades.

The city of Parma's cathedral is home to one of the greatest illusionistic frescoes of the Renaissance.

A large statue of Pope Gregory XIII in Bologna was disguised as Saint Petronius to avoid destruction.

Once known for its horse-powered knife sharpening, this 200-year-old shop offers an array of blades and hard-to-find culinary tools.

The remains of an ancient Roman city are hidden underneath Bologna's beautiful public library.

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.

Time has been frozen at this station since the bombing in 1980—or so it was believed.

Stuck in the arcade of Casa Isolani are three arrows of mysterious origins.

These medieval skyscrapers dominate the skyline of this small Tuscan town.

A dismembered holy head stares out from her beautiful reliquary at the St. Dominic Basilica.

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

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

This gallery commissioned by Cardinal Spada is known for its magnificent optical illusion.

A detailed pachyderm supports Rome's smallest Egyptian obelisk.

Plaques on its facade commemorate the Tiber's most destructive deluges.

Brass cobblestones mark the places where individual Holocaust victims were taken from their homes.

Hundreds of lucky felines haunt the ruins where Caesar was murdered.

The spot where the fascist dictator made some of his most famous speeches including declaring war on Britain and France.

Ancient ruins hidden underneath a modern luxury hotel.