With the ghosts of the Italian Renaissance looming in every shadow, with their spectacular feats of engineering and mastery of harmonic proportions, Florentine architects who’ve followed have barely stood a fighting chance to shine. But an abandoned 19th-century landmark has been given another shot.

Set into a hillside above the Arno River in Florence, Le Rampe del Poggi (Poggi’s Ramps)—a four-tiered complex of manmade grottoes, basins, fountains, arches, walkways, and stairs—have long been a crumbling curiosity for Florentines and tourists making their way from the Tower of San Niccolò up to the Piazzale Michelangelo, one of Florence’s most popular panoramic lookouts. Like a fairy tale come true, the highly decorative romantic ruin, embellished with fantastical rock formations, ornamental stonework, and verdant flora, has been returned to its original glory, which didn’t last long in the first place.