A 150-year-old statue valued at €200,000 was broken by a group of German tourists. The statue toppled over whilst the students were taking pictures of themselves with it.
It would appear there is a concerning lack of consideration for cultural artefacts among tourists to Italy. Following at least three incidents of defacement of Rome’s Colosseum, a group of German tourists are now accused of destroying a 150-year-old statue in Lombardy.
The Domina statue by artist Enrico Butti is estimated to be worth around €200,000. Surveillance footage showed them toppling the figure while posing for photos.
According to Corriere della Sera, the group of German tourists had rented Villa Aleco, the home of the Domina statue. One of the tourists may have been the well-known influencer Janis Danner, who has one and a half million followers on Instagram.
“Domina was in a way the woman who protected the villa,” stated Bruno Golferini, the manager of Villa Alceo in the town of Viggiu. “Sadly, there are these ignorant people who do these kinds of things.”
Golferini has lodged a complaint against all 17 of the tourists, who have since left Italy. Police are investigating the surveillance footage.
“When we realised, it was too late,” Golferini told Italian news station TGCOM 24. “The boys did not respect the ban on entering the fountain and were filmed by video surveillance cameras while two of them embraced the statue, dropping it and destroying it, while four of their comrades shot videos with their cell phones.”
He said it would be difficult to repair the 1.70 metre statue.
Idiots not influencers
Francesca Caruso, councillor for culture in Lombardy, told Corriere della Sera the group must pay for the damage. “Those who damage the artistic and cultural heritage must pay a steep price.”
Italy’s Deputy Prime Minister, Matteo Salvini, who reposted the story on Instagram said: “Instead of influencers, call them stupids.”
