A fairy tale castle in modern Rome.

Jesus' footprints and the first catacombs in the world.

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

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

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

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

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

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

A large grotto built in the 16th century amidst Florence's famous Boboli gardens.

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

According to the local folklore, the myriad colors of this lake are the result of a lovelorn wizard's blunder.

Thousands of well-dressed mummies below a monastery.

The underground sanctuary of a mysterious ancient cult.

Renaissance villa and gardens complete with a tormented colossus.

Rome's semi-secret peephole vista is also a former Crusader stronghold.

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

The middle finger of modernity.

Pompeii's less famous neighbor is still revealing her secrets.

A master of trompe-l'oeil creates a stunning, tourist-fooling dome out of a flat ceiling.

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

Architectureal fantasy quarter of Rome.

A submerged archeological park still holds the wonders of a Roman Sodom.