Famous attraction in Italy destroyed. Tourists painted it
It seems that the series of incidents, the “victims” of which are Italy’s tourist attractions and important cultural sites, is still ongoing. This time the vandalism took place in Florence. One of the important objects was destroyed. Probably because of the tourists.
Some time ago we reported on the incident that took place near the Colosseum in Rome. A tourist decided to carve his initials/names and the names of his beloved in the wall of an ancient monument. The man was tracked down and suffered severe consequences.
It seems that now a similar act has taken place in Florence. One of the historic buildings was destroyed by vandals. They painted graffiti on the columns adorning it. The city authorities announce heavy penalties for the perpetrators of the incident.
Another monument in Italy destroyed
The director of the Uffizi Gallery in Florence warns vandals who spray-painted the building’s façade that there will be severe consequences for them. It turns out that they managed to paint graffiti on the outer columns of the Vasari Corridor (Corridoio Vasariano), which connects the famous Palazzo Vecchio with Palazzo Pitti.
Italian Minister of Culture Gennaro Sangiuliano also announced that the police are identifying people involved in this disgraceful activity. There were also the first reports that two German tourists spending their holidays in Florence may be behind everything. The name of the German football club appeared on the columns of the famous monument.
“Such actions cannot go unpunished. Now let justice become a reality,” the minister said in a statement. He added that vandals “need to understand that from now on, even the smallest scratch will be punished.”
Severe punishment for destroying monuments
According to Italian law, a person who causes serious damage to any monument can be imprisoned for up to 3 years.
Italian police reviewed the video to identify those responsible for the graffiti in the Vasari Corridor.
“It is definitely not a drunken whim, but a premeditated act,” said Uffizi Gallery director Eike Schmidt. He called for tough sanctions against those responsible, saying that in the US such cases could result in up to five years in prison.
“Enough of symbolic punishments and invented extenuating circumstances. We need hard law,” Schmidt said.
A series of vandalism incidents in Italy has been going on since the beginning of this summer. First there was the Colosseum situation, and in early August a group of young German tourists were accused of vandalizing a valuable 19th-century Italian fountain after surveillance footage showed them knocking over one of its sculptures while posing for photos.
The historic Vasari Corridor was designed by Giorgio Vasari on the order of Prince Cosimo de Medici in 1565. It was intended to allow the princes to move safely from the Pitti Palace to the seat of government in the Palazzo Vecchio.
