Holy mysteries

There are no hospitals or prisons in the Vatican: Here's why

Image: Jamie Evawin

Located in the heart of Rome, the Vatican is a city-state with roots that stretch far beyond its official founding year. And while you might think you’ve heard all about it, the world’s smallest country still holds plenty of secrets. Let’s uncover 10 fascinating facts hidden within its walls.

Image: NASA

In July 1969, the United States sent the first humans who reached the moon. But what exactly did the astronauts bring along with them? Believe it or not, a small Vatican City flag flew aboard Apollo 11 and made it all the way to the moon. Later, President Nixon presented that same flag to Pope Paul VI.

Image: Kelsey Knight

Wine in the Vatican isn’t just for Mass. In fact, this tiny city-state has the world’s highest wine consumption per capita! That may sound shocking, but it becomes a little more reasonable when you consider two things: there are no children in the population, so almost everyone is of drinking age, and residents also enjoy tax-free wine.

Image: Luma Pimentel

Did you know there are no hospitals and no delivery rooms at all? That’s right! You can’t become a Vatican citizen by birth. Citizenship is granted only based on a person’s role or employment within the Holy See.

Image: Ivan Lemekhov

You can’t just choose to live in the Vatican. Just as citizenship isn’t granted by birth, it isn’t permanent either. Those who become citizens hold it only temporarily, and it’s revoked once their service ends.

Image: Sebastian Herrmann

Due to the large number of daily visitors, minor crimes like pickpocketing can occur. However, the Vatican doesn’t have a formal prison system. While there are a few temporary detention facilities, anyone sentenced to prison serves their time in Italian jails.

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It turns out no one has pets inside the Vatican walls, and it’s not because they don’t like animals. There is actually a rule that prohibits pets from living in or visiting the Vatican and its main attractions. While this might sound strange at first, it actually makes a lot of sense: the ban exists because the Vatican functions primarily as a high-security workplace and religious site, where noise, dirt, or pet waste wouldn’t be ideal. Of course, there are exceptions, such as guide dogs or therapy animals.

Image: Richard Wang

The Vatican is filled with incredible works by the master Michelangelo, with the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel being among the most famous. But there’s only one piece actually signed by Michelangelo himself, and it’s right here in the Vatican. More precisely, it’s in St. Peter’s Basilica: the breathtaking sculpture titled "The Pietà," completed when he was just about 24 years old.

Image: Nicolas Hoizey

The Vatican Museums are the public museums of Vatican City, housing around 70,000 works of art! Together, their corridors and halls stretch nearly 10 miles and attract over 15 million visitors each year. In addition, you can explore the incredible Bramante Staircase, with a double-helix design that is mind-blowing.

Image: Elena Mozhvilo

With so many rooms and corridors, there are also countless doors, which means countless keys. Around 2,700, to be more precise. That’s right: each morning, the museum guards are responsible for opening every single one.

Image: Erik Mclean

Lingua Latina pars fundamentalis Vaticani est. But if that sentence didn’t make sense to you, you might want to bring cash when visiting the Vatican. Why? Well, their ATMs are in Latin! The good news: Italian and English are also available, so we’re covered.

Secret uses

There’s a hidden microphone in your phone, and here’s where it is

You’ve probably twisted a bread bag closed, filled up your car, or pulled a sheet of aluminum foil from the box thousands of times without giving it a second thought. But many of the everyday objects we’ve used for decades have clever features that most people never notice. From the tiny pocket on blue jeans to the little arrow next to your gas gauge, these hidden designs have practical stories behind them, and once you know them, you’ll never look at these familiar items the same way again.

If you own an iPhone, you’ve probably noticed the tiny black dot next to the rear camera. It’s small, so people tend to assume it’s another camera sensor or even part of the phone’s design. The small hole found near the camera bump on every iPhone is actually a rear microphone.

It captures clearer audio when you’re recording videos and helps reduce background noise during FaceTime and regular phone calls. If you own an iPhone Pro model from the iPhone 12 Pro onward, you'll also see a larger dark circle. That’s the LiDAR scanner, which sends out invisible infrared light to create a 3D map of your surroundings. It helps the camera focus faster in low light, powers Apple’s Measure app, and makes augmented reality features much more accurate.

Whether it's a holiday dinner, an anniversary, or simply a nice meal with friends, you’ve probably held a wine bottle and noticed the deep indentation in the bottom. Many people tend to think the deeper the indent, the fancier the bottle.

That indentation is called a punt, and it’s been a part of the bottle-making for centuries. Originally, it helped strengthen hand-blown glass bottles, making them less likely to crack under pressure. Today, it still adds structural stability, particularly for sparkling wines, while also giving servers a comfortable place to rest their thumb when pouring, though some say it helps collect the sediment as wines age. In any case, a deeper pun doesn’t automatically mean a better or more expensive bottle.

Almost every driver has experienced that awkward moment at the gas station. You pull up to the pump, step out of the car, and suddenly realize the fuel door is on the opposite side.

To help prevent exactly that situation, many modern vehicles include a small arrow next to the gas pump symbol on the dashboard’s fuel gauge. The arrow points towards the side of the vehicle where the fuel filler door is located. It’s a small detail on the dashboard, yet once you notice it, you’ll never have to circle the pump again.

All elevators look pretty much the same. Bigger or smaller, they all look similar, a gray box with a mirror and buttons. But if you pay close attention, you may notice there’s a small round opening near the top of the door.

That opening is a keyhole used by trained maintenance technicians and emergency responders. With a special elevator key, they can manually unlock the landing doors when repairs are needed or if passengers become trapped inside. The system allows professionals to reach the elevator safely without damaging the doors or relying solely on electrical controls. Hopefully, most of us will never need to see it in action. But in an emergency, that tiny opening becomes one of the most important parts of the system.

If you’ve ever stood in the bread aisle comparing loaves, you’ve probably noticed the colorful plastic clips or twist ties holding the bags shut. Contrary to what many think, they’re not simply a part of the packaging.

For many bakeries and grocery stores, the colors indicate the day a loaf was delivered or baked. While the exact color schedule can vary between bakeries and regions, employees use the system to quickly spot older inventory and rotate fresher bread to the back of the shelf. That way, customers are more likely to pick up the freshest loaf available.

Whether you wear jeans every day or only pull them out for yard work, you’ve probably noticed the tiny extra pocket tucked inside one of the front pockets. It’s too small for a phone and not very useful for loose change, but there’s a reason for it.

Back in the 1800s, when Levi Strauss & Co. created rugged denim pants for miners, ranchers, and cowboys working across the American West, pocket watches were commonplace. Workers needed a safe place to carry their watches while riding horses, so that little pocket was designed specifically to protect the watch from damage. Pocket watches disappeared, but the tiny pocket became such an iconic part of blue jeans that manufacturers have continued including it for well over a century.

Almost everyone has had the same frustrating experience. You pull on a sheet of aluminum foil, and suddenly the entire roll slides out of the box and lands on the kitchen counter.

That’s exactly why major manufacturers such as Reynolds introduced the small side tabs, known as end locks, in the mid-1990s. By pressing the tabs inward, they hold the cardboard roll in place like built-in axles. This keeps the roll from sliding out of the box, makes it much more stable as you pull, and helps the serrated edge cut a cleaner, straighter sheet. It also reduces waste by preventing the foil from bunching up or tearing unevenly. It’s a simple design, yet useful as it can get.

Every household has pens lying around for all kinds of purposes. And most of them have a common feature, a hole in the cap, which isn’t simply part of the design.

BIC and other pen manufacturers included the opening as a safety feature. If someone, especially a child, accidentally swallows a pen cap, the hole can allow a small amount of air to pass through, reducing the risk of complete airway blockage while emergency help is on the way. The design became part of border efforts to improve consumer product safety after choking incidents drew attention to the danger of small plastic objects.

If you grew up sewing or watching somebody do it, you probably remember the classic tomato-shaped pincushion sitting beside the sewing basket. Hanging from it was a tiny red strawberry that looked like nothing more than a cute finishing touch.

In reality, that little strawberry has its own job. Instead of soft stuffing, it’s filled with emery, a gritty material made from crushed abrasive minerals. Running pins and needles through it helps polish away tiny spots of rust, smooth rough edges, and keep the points sharp enough to glide through fabric more easily.

Think back to the first time you learned to type. Maybe it was at work, or on a family computer. Wherever it was, someone probably told you to keep your fingers on the "home row." That’s exactly why the F and J keys have tiny raised ridges.

The bumps let your index fingers find the correct starting position by touch alone, allowing you to type without constantly looking down at the keyboard. The technique, known as "touch typing," is widely credited to American court stenographer Frank Edward McGurrin, who demonstrated it in 1888. As typewriters became more common, manufacturers experimented with different ways to help typists orient their hands, and by the mid-20th century, companies such as IBM standardized the subtly raised plastic bars that remain on nearly every keyboard today.