The severed head of a 17th-century Irish martyr lies within an intricate golden shrine.

The martyr's wax-enhanced skeletal remains lie preserved in a glass case in the Santa Maria della Vittoria in Rome.

The mystic whose incorrupt corpse still attracts the faithful.

The "Greatest Sewer" of ancient Rome is one of the oldest sewer systems in the world, and is still in use.

This ancient village and its adjoining cemetery have a beautiful history of death and remembrance.

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

The only "Egyptian" pyramid in Europe and the legendary tomb of Remus.

At the crypt of St. Mary of Eulogies and the Dead you are left alone to ponder mortality among piles of skulls.

An enigmatic modern marker left next to a historic Roman site.

Mysterious tombstones thought to be remnants of Atlantis.

Abandoned cemetery of the former Psychiatric Hospital of Volterra.

"The prettiest love letters in the world" ... or so said Lord Byron.

Europe’s oldest natural human mummy.

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

A mysterious chasm in the heart of the ancient Roman Forum, the Lacus Curtius was once believed to be a gateway to hell.

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

This Tuscan lake hides a 13th century town that is still visible when the water recedes.

Walk through a fairytale in Tuscany.

The world's most active stratovolcano is almost always erupting.

Erotic art covers the walls of the largest ancient pleasure palace.

Ancient snack bar of the Roman Empire re-opened.

The doodles of a genius line the walls of a secret room under the Medici Chapel, where they were hidden for nearly 500 years.

Medieval torture techniques with a modern conscience.

One of the largest caves in the world open to the public.