Catacombe dei Cappuccini, Palermo
- A monastery on the western outskirts of the city of Palermo on the island of Sicily, southern Italy, whose vaulted catacombs hold one of the world's most fascinating and largest displays of dead bodies on public display.
Thousands of corpses were preserved here, and loads of them have been put on display in niches along dank corridors, ordered by class, age and gender.
Many are mummified, others mere skeletons, but what really makes them so special is the fact that the dead on display here are actually dressed up for it! Some of the women wear really pretty clothes. That adds substantially to the eeriness of the place. Some of these well-dressed dead look like they are looking at you, not the other way round.
It's certainly not for the faint-hearted. But for the suitably equipped morbidly dark tourist it's a must-see!
Opening times: daily 9 a.m. to noon and 3 to 5 p.m. (until 7 p.m. in summer)
Closed on public holidays.
Admission: 3 EUR
Location: Piazza Cappuccini 1, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.
Google maps locator: [38.1117,13.3398]