In an incident recorded in Villa Alceo in Viggiu, in northern Italy, a group of young German tourists faces accusations of causing irreparable damage to a prized 150-year-old statue.
The apparently vandal act occurred when tourists were capturing images for their social media accounts, sparking a series of events that resulted in the collapse of the valuable work of art.
According to Bruno Golferini, manager of Villa Alceo, the problem began when two people from the group decided to climb a nearby fountain to pose for photos with the statue called “Domina”work of the renowned artist Enrico Butti, according to the agency Reuters.
The situation took a disastrous turn when another member of the group recklessly pushed the statue with a stickcausing it to crash to the ground.
Golferini has taken legal action filing a complaint with the local police against the 17 German tourists who rented the villa. However, things got even more complicated when tourists quickly left Italy, leaving behind the destroyed work.
The statue, with an estimated value of approximately 200,000 euros, equivalent to about $218,000 dollars, “has great historical and cultural importance.”
Golferini raised concerns about the challenging restoration process, citing additional damage to the fountain’s tiles, making it even more difficult to repair.
“Domina”, the fallen statue, had a symbolic meaning for Villa Alceo, since it represented the “guardian of the villa”. Unfortunately, the actions of tourists have caused a loss of heritage and cultural value, according to the manager.
This incident follows a similar act of vandalism in Italy earlier this year when a tourist from England was caught defacing Rome’s iconic Colosseum with graffiti, sparking outrage among Italians.
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