Keats-Shelley Memorial House

The house at the bottom of the Spanish Steps where 25-year-old John Keats died in 1821 is crammed with mementos. A lock of Keats’ hair and his death mask, a minuscule urn holding tiny pieces of Percy Bysshe Shelley’s charred skeleton, along with copies of documents and letters, and a massive library make this a Romantics enthusiast’s paradise. Bring a box of tissues: even the hardest-hearted can be moved to tears by the sight of manuscripts written by consumptive poets with shaky hands. On the floor directly above the museum, an apartment, replete with period decor and now managed by the Landmark Trust, can be rented for holiday stays. Devotees should also make the pilgrimage to the Cimitero Acattolico where both Keats and Shelley are buried.