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Each year Milan celebrates the safekeeping of one of Christians' most-treasured holy relics.

One of the nails that was purportedly used to fix Jesus onto the cross is kept in one of the largest Gothic cathedrals in the world.

For most of the year, the treasure is stored in a cross that hangs from the roof of the cathedral.

But every September, during La Nivola e il Santo Chiodo, the archbishop ceremoniously ascends to the heavens to retrieve it before an eager crowd.

This is achieved, however, using an unusual mode of transport. The archbishop rises to the ceiling in a cloud-painted basket, powered by a makeshift engine on the cathedral roof.

The nail is also not a nail anymore. Roman emperor Constantine turned it into a horse bridle when it came into his possession.

La Nivola e il Santo Chiodo's origins date back to the 17th century, but mystery shrouds the nail's trip to Milan.

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