Next time you're in Palermo, Sicily, don't miss Catacombs of the Cappuccini monks, one of the world's most macabre tourist attractions. "Originally the catacombs were intended only for the dead friars," says Wikipedia. "However, in the following centuries it became a status symbol to be entombed into the Capuchin catacombs. In their wills, local luminaries would ask to be preserved in certain clothes, or even to have their clothes changed at regular intervals. Priests wore their clerical vestments, others were clothed according to the contemporary fashion. Relatives would visit to pray for the deceased and also to maintain the body in presentable condition."
By Candace Dempsey, author of Murder in Italy, the true story of Amanda Knox
