Where does the story of "The Cask of Amontillado" take place?

“The Cask of Amontillado” takes place in Italy in the evening during carnival time. As the narrator tells us, it happens “one evening during the supreme madness of the carnival season...”. This quote also illustrates why the setting is important: the Italian “Carnival” is a time during which anything goes; people may break from the customs and traditions of society, which, of course, Montresor does.
The second place of importance is, of course, the damp catacombs. The atmosphere of the catacombs foreshadows Montresor’s murder of Fortunato. As they move further into the catacombs, Montresor remarks on the presence of niter in the catacombs, a chemical which marks the presence of decomposing matter: “The nitre!...it increases. It hands like moss upon the vaults...The drops of moisture trickle among the bones.” The presence of niter, in addition to actual human remains they find in the catacombs (“We had passed through walls of piled bones...”), create a very macabre atmosphere. To add to the horror of the atmosphere, when Montresor buries Fortunato, he sits on a pile of bones he has moved about in order to create room for Fortunato in the tomb: “The noise lasted for several minutes, during which, that I might hearken to it with the more satisfaction, I ceased my labors and sat down upon the bones.” The setting is not only in and of itself gruesome, but also highlights Montresor’s sinister nature.