Excelsior's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Naples, Italy

Cavalli di Bronzo

These bronze horses on the gates of the Royal Palace of Naples were a gift from a Russian tsar.
Naples, Italy

Porta Nolana

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

Funicolare Centrale

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

Fresco of John Hawkwood

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

Statue of Fernando I

A plaque on the base of this statue holds a bewitching design.
Florence, Italy

Bronze Replica of Michelangelo’s David

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.
Florence, Italy

Ospedale degli Innocenti (Hospital of the Innocents)

Renaissance hospital featuring a rotating door into which unwanted babies were dropped.
Florence, Italy

Medici Hall of Maps (Sala delle Carte Geografiche)

Over 50 exquisite hand-painted Renaissance maps decorate a Medici storage room.
Florence, Italy

Buontalenti Grotta

A large grotto built in the 16th century amidst Florence's famous Boboli gardens.
San Marino, San Marino

Montale

The smaller of the three towers of San Marino is a former prison inaccessible from the ground level.
Rimini, Italy

Ponte di Tiberio (Bridge of Tiberius)

This 2,000-year-old Doric bridge is still open to pedestrian traffic to this day.
Ravenna, Italy

Baptistery of Neon

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

Dante's Tomb

Italian poet Dante Alighieri is entombed in this small mausoleum in Ravenna, and his hometown of Florence has never been too happy about it.
Ravenna, Italy

Arian Baptistry

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

Basilica of San Vitale

This 6th-century church has the largest and best-preserved collection of Byzantine mosaics outside Constantinople.
Ravenna, Italy

Mausoleum of Galla Placidia

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

Mausoleum of Theoderic

The roof of this ancient mausoleum is made from a single Istrian stone weighing a massive 230 tons.
Classe, Italy

Sarcophagi of the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare in Classe

Numerous stone coffins from different centuries, lined up in a sixth century basilica.
Rovigo, Italy

La Rotonda

A rare example of an octagonal Catholic church.
Venice, Italy

St. Mark's Lost Third Column

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

Scala Contarini del Bovolo

This palatial spiral staircase was so unusual the name "snail" was given to the noble family who built it.
Rome, Italy

San Nicola in Carcere

This small church was constructed over the ruins of three temples dating to the Roman Republic.
Rome, Italy

Temple of Minerva Medica

Believed to be the remains of the lost Temple of Minerva, this nymphaeum has been known by its misnomer to this day.
Rome, Italy

Antoninus and Faustina Temple

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