Historic fortifications form the boundary of Vatican City, but it’s not entirely surrounded by walls.

Venice's island of the dead.

Thousand-year-old Viking runes adorn an ancient Greek lion at the entrance to the Venetian Arsenal.

Those who own or stay at this 500-year-old, allegedly cursed house often meet terrible fates.

This Roman statue is missing a limb from when the Venetians stole it from Constantinople during the Crusades.

Go inside to really appreciate this 500-year-old technological masterpiece.

Two stone columns flank the grand Venice square, but there were supposed to be three.

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

One hundred years ago this small house in downtown Zürich became the birthplace of the Dada movement.

Once a year in Pomuch, the dead are taken out for a cleaning.

The former house of an anthropologist couple displays Lacandón Maya artifacts in a homey atmosphere.

Mexico’s first and only Tzotzil Maya bookbinding workshop.

A hidden treasure of an abandoned city lies deep in the jungles of Campeche, Mexico.

The enigmatic and seldom visited ruins of a Mayan city-state.

The ruins of an ancient Mayan city, beautifully preserved and only accessible by boat.

Three small rooms in the jungle house the most elaborate and intact murals of the Mayan world.

This series of waterfalls tumble into a radiantly blue river.

The former textile factory is now an oasis for the arts.

This art center located in a former hydroelectric plant uses native plants to create paper for kites, bags, jewelry, and more.

This flagship of the Mexican Navy has had a bumpy second life after being retired from service.

This larger-than-life golden statue pays tribute to this town's old and new trades.

The population of Southeast Asian primates was introduced to Mexico in the 1970s.

In this breathtaking canyon, crocodiles bask on boulders and glide through the murky waters.

The masses at this church incorporate enough moonshine and animal sacrifice that they are no longer recognizably Catholic.