Places Added by Joel Cusumano

Does this church in Naples hold the true tomb of Vlad the Impaler, the notoriously cruel figure who inspired Bram Stoker's Dracula?

An incredible mosaic-lined monument said to have held the remains of an ancient Roman empress.

Psychoanalyst Carl Jung reported a paranormal experience after visiting this mosaic-lined Roman baptistry.

A medieval, mosaic-lined baptistry built by a heretical Christian sect.

This one-of-a-kind convent boasts a kaleidoscopic exterior of stars and double-headed eagles.

Hanging within this medieval church are the bones of a beast allegedly slain by a fourth-century saint.

This crumbling medieval basilica once attracted pilgrims by the thousands to collect a miraculous dust that formed above the saint's tomb.

Three sinkholes filled with warm, crystal-clear water reached by a horse-driven cart on an old train track through the jungle.

This mosaic-lined medieval church was built by the world's first admiral and still holds mass in ancient Greek.

This skeletal, unfinished Gothic church once housed a miraculous masterpiece by Raphael.

Behind medieval walls in a corner of bustling Palermo is a breathtaking former mosque once inhabited by a wolf-taming hermit.

A sprawling ancient Jewish cemetery with over 30 rock-hewn burial caves.

The mosaic floor of a 4th-century synagogue features a pagan zodiac wheel alongside traditional images of a Torah ark and menorahs.

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

The ruins of an abandoned medieval city where the last Byzantine emperor was crowned.

The burial place of an obscure North African saint was turned into a macabre body preservation factory for the 17th-century Neapolitan elite.

A small etching on the white marble parapet was written in runic script by a Viking mercenary.

The remains of the left arm of the levitating philosopher-saint are kept in a 13th-century Neapolitan basilica.

A mysterious ancient elephant said to possess magic powers is now the symbol of a Sicilian city.