Legend has it that this bronze orb, which sat atop an ancient Egyptian obelisk, once held the ashes of Julius Caesar.

According to local folklore, this Roman sepulcher was once a throne for the Devil.

Remnants of a 4th-century church with vivid medieval frescoes and ancient sarcophagi hide beneath this old basilica.

This subterranean shrine beneath a bike rental store celebrates the iconic Italian scooter.

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

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

This former Roman Catholic Church still contains the embalmed hearts and organs of 22 popes.

Jesus' footprints and the first catacombs in the world.

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

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

The yawning maw of this pagan visage is said to bite off the hands of liars.

Architectureal fantasy quarter of Rome.

This medieval city gate is now a blend of the past and the modern world.

A popular legend claims that the famous pizza was invented at a restaurant in this alley.

This shining multicolored metro station deep under Naples is said to be the most beautiful in Europe.

Dug as a secret royal escape route, the tunnel became a wartime bomb shelter and dumping ground for vintage cars.

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

This amazingly well-preserved villa just outside Pompeii boasts rare examples of ancient Roman paintings.

Before it was buried by volcanic ash, this fast-food restaurant fed the hungry hordes of ancient Rome.

One of the last examples of Soviet architectural propaganda has a few technological tricks up its sleeve.

This frozen-in-time summer home outside Moscow provides a look at Russian life in the 1950s.

A solemn, monumental, kitschy palace of worship honoring victory in the Great Patriotic War.

This small museum is basically a time capsule of daily life in the Soviet Union.

Modern megaliths form this work of cosmic, Celtic landscape art.