The Park of the Monsters or Parco dei Mostri is a 16th-century horror spectacle set within a beautiful Italian garden. Commissioned in 1552 by Prince Pier Francesco Orsini, this park was created as an expression of sorrow intended to shock its visitors. The park is filled with strange and intriguing sculptures. Among the standout pieces are a war elephant, a fish-headed monster, a giant tearing another giant apart, and a house built at an angle to disorient those who enter. Perhaps the most terrifying sculpture in the garden is a colossal head with its mouth wide open in a scream. Salvador Dalí was so taken with the park that he filmed a short film there, and the sculptures influenced his work, The Temptation of Saint Anthony. Many other artists followed him, including the Argentinian writer Manuel Mujica Lainez, whose novel "Bomarzo" is inspired by the park (which was later made into an opera). Explore the park with a local licensed guide on a 2-hour private guided tour.