Plaques on its facade commemorate the Tiber's most destructive deluges.

This sturdy, circular stronghold served as one of the forts that protected the Venetian Lagoon.

Not far from the more famous House of Juliet, visitors will find the supposed residence of her lover.

One of the oldest libraries in the world is still operating and contains the oldest existing document in the Italian language.

In Florence's great Duomo, a 26 foot fresco honors a mercenary famous for attacking Florence.

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

A whale rib was used to advertise the store by the arch that offered exotic goods from far away.

An ancient Roman temple first dedicated to an emperor's wife is now a church.

A rather vulgar example of the transition from Latin to the Italian vernacular.

The only visible reminders of an elaborate engineering project that kept the tower from reaching the tipping point.

Some say this medieval church is where the poet Dante married his wife and also met the love of his life.

This 17th-century passageway is home to numerous bookshops, a witch legend, and the oldest pizzeria in the world.

An 18th century fountain and two columns are all that remains of Rome's forgotten river harbor.

It’s said this crypt was the setting for the tragic finale of the Shakespeare play.

In a city that boasts four separate inclined cable railways, this is one of the busiest funicular lines in the world.

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.

Also known as the Square Colosseum, this building is a prime example of fascist-era rationalist architecture.

The bomb-ravaged remains of of a colossal Neptune.

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

An extensive collection of reliquaries containing the bones of saints housed in the largest Catholic church in Venice.

A detailed pachyderm supports Rome's smallest Egyptian obelisk.

A dismembered holy head stares out from her beautiful reliquary at the St. Dominic Basilica.

A lover's walk between hilltop towns, decorated with graffiti love notes.

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