A sublime medieval path adorns the marble floor of one of the most beautiful Gothic cathedrals in France.

If you want to talk to the Pope you will have to stare down this surreal vision of Jesus rising from a nuclear hell.

Hidden beneath the famous St. Peter's Basilica is a veritable city of the dead that may hold the remains of St. Peter himself.

The astonishing collection of an infamous criminologist.

The home of a neoclassical master is now a shrine to his chosen art style.

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

The marble facade hides a little-known medical museum with early surgical instruments and rare copies of canonical texts.

This basilica is dedicated to two saints, one of which is known more for his famous quote.

An 18th century fountain and two columns are all that remains of Rome's forgotten river harbor.

This deconsecrated church has seen many uses, from a tobacco storehouse to a cinema.

This old medieval prison tower has been a site of astronomical research for more than 250 years.

In medieval times this small stone seat was used as a bizarre way to punish insolvent debtors.

The old church, buried by the 1784 Mount Vesuvius eruption, is a remarkably well-preserved place where people now pray for the souls of the dead.

A fortified medieval basilica on the Caelian Hill preserves extraordinary frescoes and one of Rome's most beautiful hidden cloisters.

Why a column on the entrance is inscribed with a verse from the Quran is one of Sicily's many mysteries.

Its interior is adorned with some of the best examples of early Christian mosaics.

A medieval wash house where people washed clothes in a river allegedly formed by the tears of a mourning nymph.

The roof of this ancient mausoleum is made from a single Istrian stone weighing a massive 230 tons.

This triumphal 16th-century arched gateway leads to the oldest street in Palermo.

Skulls and skeletons are omnipresent in this church dedicated to souls trapped in purgatory.

This cathedral hides a sculpted dog that determines your fate and an unexploded shell from World War II.

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

An abandoned quarry hides an open-air gallery of huge sculptures, some made from the rubble of 9/11.

The oldest volcanology research center in the world.