Italy
Tourist scratches wall in Colosseum in Rome – minister outraged
The Colosseum is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Italy. photo
© Riccardo De Luca/AP/dpa
The Colosseum is considered the symbol of the Italian capital. A tourist now immortalized the name of his girlfriend in the 2000-year-old building. He could face a hefty fine.
A tourist scratched a wall in the famous Colosseum in Rome. The young man used a key to carve his girlfriend’s name into the brickwork, according to videos circulating on social media on Monday. Another visitor to the amphitheater in the heart of the Italian capital, which is very popular with tourists, filmed the act. Many users reacted angrily on social media.
The Italian Minister of Culture, Gennaro Sangiuliano, was outraged and condemned the scrawl in the strongest possible terms. “It is very serious, unworthy and a sign of great lack of culture that a tourist defaces one of the most famous places in the world, a historical heritage,” he said on Monday, according to a statement. Sangiuliano hopes the man will be identified and punished.
High fine threatened
The man could face a hefty fine. A few years ago, for example, a Russian tourist who had scratched something on a wall in the Colosseum had to pay a fine of 20,000 euros. According to media reports, should the still unknown tourist be tracked down, he could face a similarly high penalty.
The Roman landmark, which is around 2000 years old, is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Italy and is considered the symbol of the Eternal City. It was built in the 1st century AD and is considered the largest amphitheater in the world. In ancient Rome, gladiator races and sometimes cruel and brutal fights took place in it. The Colosseum attracts millions of visitors every year.