This sword isn't waiting for a king to pull it out. It was placed there by a saint.

This immaculate and historic water garden culminates in a massive stone dining table with an inset fountain for chilling the wine of the Cardinal's guests.

David Sedaris called it "The greatest shop in the world."

These "anatomical machines" are only one of the many strange items in this Italian crypt.

Skulls from the plague of 1656 and World War II bombings are united by a cult dedicated to caring for the ancient dead.

This giant middle finger statue sends an unambiguous message to Italy's bankers.

This centuries-old Italian chapel hangs midway down a sheer cliffside.

Abandoned medieval hill town.

The abandoned "Ghost Mansion" was left to decay in the mountains of Northern Italy.

A collection of objects supposedly singed by the hands of souls in purgatory.

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

Five candy-colored villages on the Italian Riviera.

A fairy tale castle in modern Rome.

This 16th-century monastery has been turned into a surrealist architecture compound.

The largest and most famous wax anatomical collection anywhere in the world.

An Italian hillside ghost town.

An ossuary built in 1210 to collect bones from the Ospedale Maggiore of Milan.

Architectural monsters are devouring this palace's every door and window.

The engineering wonder and pleasure dome of a much-maligned emperor still holds undiscovered secrets.

The last moments of the ill-fated Pompeiians, frozen forever in plaster.

The final resting place of the poets Shelley and Keats.

As can be expected from a centuries old church built in a canal city, the undercroft of this house of worship is beautifully flooded.

Venice's "Island of the Mad."

The skull of the patron saint of lovers lies in the Basilica di Santa Maria in Cosmedin—maybe.