Rome's first modern graffito is all that is left of a peaceful protest from the 1970s.

This small, ancient Roman temple was once a church dedicated to the patron saint of penitents.

A detailed pachyderm supports Rome's smallest Egyptian obelisk.

The studio built by fascists in the hopes of "reviving the film industry" with the occasional propaganda film opportunity thrown in.

In the early Roman Empire, people deemed traitors and criminals were tossed to their deaths from this rock.

The ruins of the largest gladiatorial school in Rome are largely hidden under modern streets.

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

This curious, round temple is the oldest still-standing marble building in Rome.

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

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

This beautiful park on the outskirts of Rome protects the ruins of two colossal ancient aqueducts.

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

2300-year-old Roman road connecting the empire.

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

Rome’s legendary peephole vista is also a former Crusader stronghold.

This hidden Art Nouveau courtyard is an opulent feast for the eyes.

Memorials at a Florence railway station remember the citizens who were deported from Italy and sent to extermination camps.

A copy of the famous statue can be found in this Florence piazza, along with one of the most breathtaking views of the city below.

A slightly creepy gallery of plaster cast models in the same museum as Michelangelo's David.

This bronze boar's snout has been rubbed to a golden sheen by visitors seeking good fortune.

The famous sculptor left his mark on this Italian wall in an internationally protected example of street art.

The oldest operating pharmacy in the world features 800-year-old recipes.

The middle finger of modernity.

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