Places onlyfrancis Wants to Go

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

Its interior is adorned with some of the best examples of early Christian mosaics.

A detailed pachyderm supports Rome's smallest Egyptian obelisk.

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

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

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

This is the oldest Roman-made bridge in the city still existing in its original state.

A mysterious chasm in the heart of the ancient Roman Forum, the Lacus Curtius was once believed to be a gateway to hell.

More sculpture than building, this architecturally significant temple was built on the spot of Saint Peter's crucifixion.

Brass cobblestones mark the places where individual Holocaust victims were taken from their homes.

This hydrochronometer was invented by a Dominican monk and is a prime feature in this garden.

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

This Roman arch marks the location of an ancient gate at one of the Seven Hills of Rome.

A hospital where antique dolls are given new life.

A Nesting Doll of Churches.

This large, circular tomb is the final resting place of the first emperor of Rome.

A fairy tale castle in modern Rome.

This ritzy Italian market is built around a statue of an unforgiven heretic who was burned for his belief in an endless universe.

A forgotten "city of water" underneath the famous Trevi district.

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

At the crypt of St. Mary of Eulogies and the Dead you are left alone to ponder mortality among piles of skulls.

2300-year-old Roman road connecting the empire.

An alchemist's “magic door” stands in the middle of a Roman park.

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