The most astonishing place on the mountain is the palace hanging off the northern cliff face, which was discovered with some original frescoes, battered and worn by 2,000 years of weather. Most of these frescoes were moved to a museum. In the spirit of authenticity, fresco scholars replaced them with new frescoes, painted with original pigments and materials, intending to show what the walls once looked like. And the answer is: like a theme-park Italian restaurant. They're unbelievably gaudy. We're so accustomed to the restrained appearance of aged, washed-out ancient art that we forget that when the ancients were decorating 2,000 years ago, they could be just as tacky as we can.