Archive for 'Curiosities'

The Cathedral of St. Ambrose is a building in Lombardy with roots going as far back as the tenth century, though the present structure dates to the sixteenth.

It is the seat of the Bishop of Vigevano and the current building was commissioned by Duke Francesco II Sforza in 1530.

Dedicated to St. Ambrose, it was designed by Antonio da Lonate and thought it was begun shortly afterwards, work was not completed until 1612.

With beautiful painted interiors, a newer Baroque façade and a famous treasury and museum inside, it is a typical Italian cathedral in many ways.

Located on the upscale Via Veneto in Rome, Santa Maria della Concezione is dedicated to Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception. It was built in 1626 by Cardinal Antonio Barberini, the younger brother of Pope Urban VIII, who was a Capuchin friar. Antonio Casoni and another Capuchin Friar, Michele da Bergamo, were the architects and they built a beautiful but simple church. The real interest in this site, however, is what lies below. When the Capuchins moved from their location at the Quirinal to the Via Veneto site, they brought the bones of around 4000 friars and placed them in a cemetery under the church, arranged in patterns on the walls and ceilings. The result is eerie and very unusual. Find a holiday rental in Rome and see it yourself.

Cimitero delle Fontanelle, or Fontanelle Cemetery, is an ancient necropolis in the Valley of the Dead, Naples. A 30,000 m² cavern in Capodimonte Hill, it holds the skeletal remains of those too poor to afford proper burial, vast numbers that died from disease and the numbers that overflowed from local burial places. In use since the 16th century, estimates suggest that at one point it held over eight million bones. The cemetery began as a secondary burial ground but, unusually for an ossuary, saw the bones come to be cared for exceptionally carefully and lovingly. Closed for a period, it is now reopened to the public and makes for both an extraordinary site of worship for the faithful and an astounding sight for all others.

In the market for an exceptionally unusual attraction to visit in Italy this summer? Perhaps something that can be seen from space? Maybe something unlike anything else in the world? Well, if that is the case, Piedmont has just the thing for you: A giant, knitted pink bunny which can be seen from satellites above earth. Located in the Alps in a rural spot called Colletto Fava, the oddity attracts many visitors each year. Knitted from wool, it is slowly rotting away and is expected to have disappeared entirely by 2025, if you want to get the chance to see it for yourself, you'll need to plan a trip in the next few years. As it is, it has already deteriorated quite a bit. So, why not find a villa with pool in Piedmont and spend a day visiting this unusual sight?

The Abbey of San Fruttuoso in Camogli is a famous tourist destination, filled with art, architecture and history but off the coast from this institution is a rather more unique attraction.

The Christ of the Abyss is a submerged bronze statue of Christ called Christ of the Abyss which was placed in the bay at San Fruttuoso in 1954. Copies of the work have been placed in the waters at Grenada and Florida since then. If you have a passion for diving or in seeing oddities around the world, this might prove interesting.

Why not find a villa with pool in Liguria and spend your entire holiday in the water?