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☆ Ancient beach destroyed by Mount Vesuvius eruption in AD79 reopens after restoration
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-19 | by ( Sharon Braithwaite | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —An ancient beach that was destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius nearly 2,000 years ago has reopened to the public after restoration works. It reopened to the public Wednesday following years of archaeological excavations and restoration works, during which human remains and other evidence of the eruption were discovered. A view of the ancient beach, with the skeletons of the fugitive victims of the eruption of Vesuvius in 79AD, open to the public for the first time. “Herculaneum, Pompeii, Oplontis: we are working on many projects”, the Italian Minister of Culture Gennaro Sangiuliano said Wednesday. Because we are convinced that this will represent a opportunity for socio-economic development,” he added.

Persons: Pliny the Elder, Francesco Sirano, Marco Cantile, Gennaro Sangiuliano, ” Organizations: CNN, “, UNESCO Locations: Vesuvius, 79AD, Herculaneum, Oplontis, Italian

☆ Dutch tourist accused of graffitiing ancient Roman villa in Herculaneum
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-05 | by ( Story Reuters | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

Reuters —A tourist from the Netherlands has defaced a frescoed wall in an ancient Roman house in Herculaneum, near Naples, damaging a building that survived the volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, Italian police said on Monday. The police statement said the 27-year-old tourist was swiftly identified after staff at the archaeological site discovered tagged graffiti writing made with a black, indelible marker pen on a white section of a painted wall. The tourist, who was not named, faces charges of damage and defacement of artistic works. It is not the first time that historical monuments have been vandalised by tourists in Italy. In response to repeated acts of vandalism, Italy this year introduced tougher penalties on those who damage monuments and cultural sites, imposing fines of up to €40,000 (around $43,500) for those found guilty of defacing monuments.

Persons: Gennaro Sangiuliano, Emanuele II Organizations: Reuters, Police, Galleria Locations: Netherlands, Herculaneum, Naples, Vesuvius, Italy, England

☆ A blue painted shrine is the latest discovery in Pompeii ‘treasure chest’
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-04 | by ( Antonia Mortensen | Jessie Gretener | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Milan, Italy CNN —Archaeologists have unearthed an intricately decorated blue room, interpreted as an ancient Roman shrine known as a sacrarium, during recent excavations in central Pompeii in Italy. Italian Ministry of CultureThe walls of the room feature female figures that are said to depict the four seasons of the year, as well as allegories of agriculture and shepherding. The new discovery came amid excavations in the Regio IX area of central Pompeii, a residential area that is currently one of the most active excavation sites for new findings. The project aims to improve the structure of the area, making the “protection of the vast Pompeiian heritage… more effective and sustainable,” the culture ministry said. Italian Ministry of CultureLast week, it was reported that archaeologists in Pompeii had uncovered children’s sketches depicting violent scenes of gladiators and hunters battling animals.

Persons: Gennaro Sangiuliano Organizations: Italy CNN —, of Culture, Italian Ministry of, Italian Ministry of Culture Locations: Milan, Italy, Pompeii, Regio IX

☆ European court says Italy is the rightful owner of Getty Museum bronze statue
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-03 | by ( Barbie Nadeau | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Rome CNN —Italy has the right to confiscate a life-size bronze statue dating back to the second or third centuries B.C. The ruling came after the Getty Museum asked the European Court of Human Rights to intervene following a 2018 Italian court decree that the bronze statue should be confiscated and returned to Italy. The contested statue is being held at the Getty Villa Museum in Malibu, Los Angeles. Rolf_52/Alamy Stock PhotoThe Getty Museum does not agree with the latest ruling. Italy will now work with US authorities to return the statue, a spokesperson for the cultural ministry told CNN.

Persons: Rome, Paul, Lysippos, “, Getty, Gennaro Sangiuliano, ”, It’s, ” Maurizio Fiorilli Organizations: Rome CNN —, Paul Getty Villa Museum, European, of Human, Getty Museum, of Human Rights, The Getty Museum, Cultural Heritage Ministry, Getty Villa Museum, Getty, American, of Culture, Louvre Museum, Minneapolis Museum, CNN Locations: Rome CNN — Italy, Los Angeles , California, Italian, Italy, ”, Malibu , Los Angeles, Greece, Strasbourg, Italian State, Marche, Stabia

☆ La Scala Opera Taps an Italian to Be Its Next Leader
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-16 | by ( Elisabetta Povoledo | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Teatro alla Scala in Milan, one of the world’s most prestigious and storied opera houses, announced Tuesday that its next leader would be Fortunato Ortombina, who is currently general director of Venice’s opera house, Teatro La Fenice. Ortombina will succeed Dominique Meyer, a respected French impresario who has run La Scala since 2020 and who previously led the Vienna State Opera. “A decision has finally been reached,” Mayor Giuseppe Sala of Milan, who is the chairman of the foundation that runs the opera house, said Tuesday after a board meeting. The appointment of Ortombina ended months of speculation and whispers in the opera world. “After three foreign general directors, Stéphane Lissner, Alexander Pereira and Dominique Meyer, an Italian returns to La Scala,” he said in a statement, which noted that the practice of Italian opera singing had recently been added to UNESCO’s intangible cultural heritage list.

Persons: Fortunato Ortombina, Ortombina, Dominique Meyer, Giuseppe Sala of, Gennaro Sangiuliano, “, Stéphane Lissner, Alexander Pereira, ” Organizations: Scala, Teatro La Fenice, La Scala, Vienna State Opera, ” Locations: Milan, French, Giuseppe Sala of Milan

☆ Home renovation frozen in time reveals Roman building technique
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( Barbie Latza Nadeau | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Rome CNN —Archaeologists excavating the site of Pompeii have uncovered an ancient building site, revealing Roman construction techniques used by builders at the time, according to the Italian Ministry of Culture. The ancient Roman city of Pompeii was home to up to 20,000 people before it was destroyed in the 79 AD eruption, which was visible from more than 40 kilometers (25 miles) away. Archaeologists have found what would have been an active construction site - perhaps more accurately described as a home renovation, according to Massimo Osanna, the general director of the site, in a press statement released Monday. Archaeologists say the site reveals the secrets as to how Roman structures have proven to be so durable. Courtesy Italy Ministry of CultureThe latest findings paint a fuller picture of how ancient Romans lived.

Persons: Rome, Massimo Osanna, ” Osanna, Achilles, Skyros, Gabriel Zuchtriegel, Caracalla, ”, Zuchtriegel, Gennaro Sangiuliano Organizations: Rome CNN —, Italian Ministry of Culture, Archaeologists, Italy Ministry of, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT Locations: Pompeii, Italy, cocciopesto

☆ Venice Biennale Says It Will Disregard Petition to Ban Israel
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Alex Marshall | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

In a sign of the deep divisions over the war in Gaza, thousands of artists signed an open letter urging the Venice Biennale to ban “any official representation of Israel” during the art world’s most important event. This week, they got an answer: The Biennale and Italy’s culture minister said that Israel would still be taking part. The Biennale said in a statement on Wednesday that any country recognized by Italy could request to participate. The Biennale would “not take into consideration any petition or call to exclude” countries, it added. The comments came a day after Gennaro Sangiuliano, Italy’s culture minister, issued a far stronger statement in support of Israel’s participation.

Persons: Israel ”, Gennaro Sangiuliano Organizations: Venice Biennale Locations: Gaza, Venice, Israel, Italy

☆ Italy donates 3D-printed replica of statue destroyed by ISIS to Iraq
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-13 | by ( James Imam | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Italy has donated a reconstructed Assyrian statue to Iraq in a gesture former culture minister Francesco Rutelli described as a “miracle” of Italian cultural diplomacy. Constructed in the ninth century BC, the 5-meter-tall (16-foot) “Bull of Nimrud” was destroyed by ISIS fighters in 2015, before Italian artisans made a copy of the monument using 3D-printing technology. The replica, which was previously displayed at the Colosseum in Rome and the UNESCO headquarters in Paris, has now been permanently relocated outside the entrance to the Basrah Museum in the Iraqi city of Basra. "The Bull of Nimrud," a full-sized reconstruction of the bull figure from the ancient Assyrian city Nimrud, on display in the "Reborn from Destruction" exhibition at the Colosseum in October 2016. The “Bull of Nimrud,” which stood at the site and is a symbol of the Assyrian civilization, was among the destroyed monuments.

Persons: Francesco Rutelli, Nimrud, ” Gennaro Sangiuliano, ” Rutelli, Civiltà, meanwhile, Klaus Blume, Nicola Salvioli, ”, Shalmaneser III, Ashurnasirpal, Abdul Latif Rashid Organizations: The Art, CNN, CNN —, ISIS, UNESCO, Basrah Museum, Associazione, Facebook, of Bel Locations: CNN — Italy, Iraq, Rome, Paris, Iraqi, Basra, “ Italy, Nimrud, Mosul, Ashurnasirpal, Palmyra, Ebla, Italy

☆ Italy's Junior Culture Minister Quits After Stolen Painting Scandal
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

ROME (Reuters) - Italian junior culture minister and art critic Vittorio Sgarbi, under investigation over possession of a stolen painting, said on Friday he was quitting because Rome's antitrust body was trying to curb his unofficial duties. Sgarbi, 71, is a long-serving parliamentarian and outspoken TV personality who was close to former primer minister Silvio Berlusconi who died last year. Sgarbi said the antitrust authority, which is investigating him over a possible conflict of interest, had informed him he should not attend an art conference. "According to the antitrust notice, I should not talk about art, I should not deal with art. I should be a junior minister dealing with administrative duties, and limited ones," he said.

Persons: Vittorio Sgarbi, Sgarbi, Silvio Berlusconi, Michelangelo, Gennaro Sangiuliano, Alessandro Parodi, Christina Fincher Organizations: Prosecutors Locations: ROME, Milan, Turin

☆ Mass tourism has turned Florence into a ‘prostitute,’ museum boss says, sparking outrage
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Barbie Latza Nadeau | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Rome CNN —Mass tourism has turned the Italian city of Florence into a “prostitute,” the director of Galleria dell’Accademia has said, sparking anger and calls for her to step down. Florence mayor Dario Nardella told Florence City Council on Monday that the city deserved respect and that tourism employs thousands of people. With the Academy, for example, we have tried to enhance every extraordinary part of it,” she said in the museum statement sent to CNN Tuesday. Italy’s culture minister Sangiuliano said his ministry would look further into the matter, but called Hollberg’s words “serious and offensive” in nature. “According to the director of the museum, therefore, Florentines are the children of a prostitute and the tourists are the clients of a prostitute?

Persons: Rome, Cecilie Hollberg, ”, —, Dario Franceschini, Giorgia Meloni, Dario Nardella, ” Nardella, Petr Svarc, Matteo Renzi, “, Gennaro Sangiuliano, Hollberg, Florence, “ I’m, ‘, Sangiuliano, Alessia Bettini, ” Bettini Organizations: Rome CNN, Florence, Florence City Council, UNESCO, Accademia, Academy, CNN, “ Locations: Italian, Florence, dell’Accademia, “, Venice, Italy

☆ Italy Searches for Museum Leaders, With Nationalism in the Air
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Elisabetta Povoledo | More About Elisabetta Povoledo | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Ten candidates are up for each job. The final selection will be made sometime next month by Gennaro Sangiuliano, Italy’s culture minister, and Massimo Osanna, the ministry’s director overseeing museums. It has been eight years since a reform granted some Italian arts institutions greater autonomy and opened up the position of museum director to people from outside the culture ministry’s ranks. The then-culture minister, Dario Franceschini, sought applications from foreigners to shake up the museum sector, even publishing the job advertisement in The Economist magazine. At the first 20 museums affected by the reform, Franceschini appointed seven foreigners and several Italians with experience abroad, who were hired for a four-year contract, that could be renewed once.

Persons: whittle, Gennaro Sangiuliano, Massimo Osanna, Dario Franceschini, Franceschini Organizations: Culture Ministry, Brera, Economist Locations: Florence, Naples, Milan

☆ Ancient Roman site of Pompeii is about to ‘expand’
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-09 | by ( Julia Buckley | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

So with ever more tourists cramming onto the site, the team behind the archaeological park of Pompeii have found a plan B – dispersing visitors around ancient sites that are further afield, with all-in-one tickets and shuttles laid on between the sites. A shuttle service around the sites – the Pompeii Artebus – was piloted in 2021. The ancient city was the most visited heritage site in Italy on the last “Domenica al Museo” – state-run heritage sites have free entry on the first Sunday of the month. Tickets for the ‘scattered’ site will be valid for three days, with free shuttles connecting all the sites. The Villa dei Misteri at Pompeii will also get new lighting which will better replicate the original lighting in the villa.

Persons: we’ll, Stanley Tucci, Torre Annunziata, Gennaro Sangiuliano, Nero, Poppaea Sabina, Villa Arianna, Villa, Villa Poppaea, Poppaea, Libero, Sangiuliano Organizations: CNN, intel, Villa San Marco, Castellammare, Villa Regina, European Union, Major, Museo Locations: Boscoreale, Torre, Oplontis, Stabiae, Rome, Italy, –, It’ll, Civita, Castellamare

☆ Venice avoids being added to UNESCO list of endangered sites
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ROME, Sept 14 (Reuters) - A UNESCO committee has decided not to add Venice to the organisation's World Heritage List in Danger, disregarding a recommendation from experts and sparing the Italian government from an embarrassing verdict on the city's condition. "The World Heritage Committee ... has made the decision not to inscribe Venice and its Lagoon on the World Heritage List in Danger," UNESCO, the U.N. cultural agency, said in a statement as the committee met in Riyadh. Italian Culture Minister Gennaro Sangiuliano said adding Venice to the list would have been an "undue move" not based on objective facts. Venice, known for its canals and cultural sites, has long been threatened by floods and mass tourism. However, UNESCO said more work was needed to protect the fragile lagoon city.

Persons: Gennaro Sangiuliano, Sangiuliano, MOSE, Angelo Amante, John Irish, Alvise Armellini, David Holmes Organizations: UNESCO, Heritage, Thomson Locations: Venice, Riyadh, Italian, Rome, Paris

☆ Vasari Corridor: Tourists arrested for spraying soccer graffiti on 460-year-old Italian landmark
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Barbie Latza Nadeau | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

This time it was the turn of the 460-year-old Vasari Corridor, a beautiful riverside passageway connected to the famous Uffizi Galleries in Florence, which was sprayed with Munich soccer-related graffiti in the early hours of August 23. Airbnb raidHow the Vasari Corridor looked before the graffiti incident. The one-kilometer-long Vasari Corridor was built by Italian Renaissance painter and architect Giorgio Vasari in less than nine months in 1565. Tourists behaving badlyThe graffiti reference a Munich soccer club. “I would like to express my thanks to the Carabinieri for promptly identifying the alleged perpetrators of the Vasari Corridor in Florence.

Persons: Rome, Rome CNN —, Airbnb, Tim Clayton, Corbis, Giorgio Vasari, Cosimo I de’Medici, Medici, Dan Brown, Florence Mayor Dario Nardella, It’s, Eike Schmidt, Schmidt, Gennaro Sangiuliano, ” Organizations: Rome CNN, Galleries, Carabinieri, Operations Unit, CNN, Culture Ministry, Authorities, Uffizi, UNESCO, TSV, Vasari Locations: Florence, Munich, “, Uffizi, Italian, Ponte, Santa Felicita, Italy, Rome, Venice, German

☆ New find throws light on life of slaves in Ancient Rome's Pompeii
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

ROME, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Archaeologists have discovered a small bedroom in a Roman villa near Pompeii that was almost certainly used by slaves, throwing light on their lowly status in the ancient world, the culture ministry said on Sunday. The room was found at the Civita Giuliana villa, some 600 metres (2,000 ft) north of the walls of Pompeii, which was wiped out by a volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius nearly 2,000 years ago. Archaeologists said part of one of the beds had been destroyed by a tunnel used by robbers to access another part of the villa. Pompeii and the surrounding countryside was submerged by volcanic ash when Mount Vesuvius exploded in AD 79, killing thousands of Romans who had no idea they were living beneath one of Europe's biggest volcanoes. The eruption buried the city in a thick layer of ash, preserving many of its residents and buildings.

Persons: Gabriel Zuchtriegel, Gennaro Sangiuliano, Crispian Balmer, Christina Fincher Organizations: EU, Culture, Thomson Locations: Vesuvius

☆ Pompeii find reveals the secrets of life as a slave in Ancient Rome, frozen in time for almost 2,000 years by volcanic eruption
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-20 | by ( Rebecca Rommen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A bedroom "assigned to slaves" was discovered by archaeologists near Pompeii. The room at the Civita Giuliana villa sheds light on the living conditions of ancient Roman slaves. The find also offered an insight into the social hierarchy in ancient Rome, as the culture ministry noted that there was no evidence of locks or shackles discovered in the room. A small bedroom, used by slaves, is pictured after it was discovered by archaeologists in a Roman villa near Pompeii, Italy. Gennaro Sangiuliano, the Italian Minister of Culture, said the finds confirmed the need to continue research in the area.

Persons: Gabriel Zuchtriegel, Gennaro Sangiuliano Organizations: Service, Archaeologists, of Locations: Wall, Silicon, Rome, Pompeii, Italy, Italian

☆ Mark Zuckerberg says people should assume Elon Musk's comments about their cage fight 'has not been agreed on'
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-12 | by ( Jyoti Mann | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Mark Zuckerberg suggested that people should take Elon Musk's comments with a pinch of salt. He said on Threads on Friday that people should "assume anything he says has not been agreed on." The Meta chief made the quip after Musk claimed that an "epic location" had been agreed upon. Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk have renewed their intense rivalry as both billionaires continue to exchange jabs. "Until then, please assume anything he says has not been agreed on," Zuckerberg wrote.

Persons: Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk's, Musk, Elon Musk, Zuckerberg, he'll, Elon, I'm, Chan, Gennaro Sangiuliano, Musk brazenly, X didn't Organizations: Morning, UFC, Initiative, Musk Foundation, Culture, Italy's, Twitter, Meta Locations: Rome

☆ Italy stands ready to host as Musk talks up Zuckerberg rumble
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Musk and Zuckerberg have been egging each other into a mixed martial arts (MMA) cage match since June. At one point, Musk said the fight would take place in Rome's Colosseum, but Italy ruled that out. "Everything in camera frame will be ancient Rome, so nothing modern at all. I spoke to the PM of Italy and Minister of Culture. A day later, Zuckerberg, who has posted pictures of matches he has won on his company's Instagram platform, asked Musk to "send location" for the proposed throwdown.

Persons: Elon Musk, Meta's Mark Zuckerberg, Zuckerberg, Musk, Gennaro Sangiuliano, Angelo Amante, Federico Maccioni, Crispian Balmer Organizations: Twitter, of Culture, Italy's, Thomson Locations: Rome, U.S, Italy, jiujitsu

CNN —Two more tourists have been caught apparently defacing the Colosseum in Rome, following a similar incident in June. The very next day, a 17-year-old student from Germany was caught allegedly doing something similar. This is the same punishment potentially faced by a 27-year-old British tourist who was filmed apparently carving his name into the wall of the ancient arena last month. Dimitrov allegedly scratched “Ivan+Hayley 23” into the wall of the Colosseum, representing his and his girlfriend’s names. A similar incident also occurred in 2020, when security staff spotted an Irish tourist allegedly carving his initials into the ancient structure and reported him to the police.

Persons: Ivan Dimitrov, “, regrettably, ”, Alexandro Maria Tirelli, Dimitrov, Ivan, Hayley, Gennaro Sangiuliano Organizations: CNN Locations: Rome, Switzerland, Province of Rome, Germany, Irish

☆ In Line? Online? Either Way, a Ticket to Frustration for Pantheon Tourists
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-09 | by ( Elisabetta Povoledo | More About Elisabetta Povoledo | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The lines to get into the Pantheon, one of Rome’s most famous ancient sites, were high-season typical, snaking past the obelisk-topped fountain in the middle of the square to the cafes at the back. But they were especially slow-moving on Monday, the first day that the Italian Culture Ministry introduced an entrance ticket, priced at 5 euros, to enter the 2,000-year-old monument. Hotly debated for years, the ticketing plan was announced in March by the culture minister, Gennaro Sangiuliano, who said that charging a small fee to help maintain the most popular cultural site in Italy — with about nine million visitors a year — “was an objective based on common sense.”The equivalent of about $5.50 might be a small price to pay to see one of the world’s most iconic monuments — where the painter Raphael is buried — but the new fee has been accompanied by stumbling blocks.

Persons: Gennaro Sangiuliano, “, Raphael Organizations: Italian Culture Ministry Locations: Italy

☆ Police say tourist filmed allegedly carving ‘Ivan+Hayley’ on Rome’s Colosseum has been identified
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( Julia Buckley | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —He caused shockwaves around the world when he was filmed apparently carving his name into a wall of Rome’s 2,000-year-old Colosseum – and grinning when he realized he was caught on camera. The visitor who this week allegedly scratched “Ivan+Hayley 23” on a brick wall of one of the world’s most precious buildings, has been identified, according to Italy’s culture minister. Police “identified the main suspect through traditional investigations and photographic comparison,” they wrote. In 2020, an Irish tourist was reported to the police for allegedly carving his initials into a wall. Last August, an American couple were caught carving their initials into the Arch of Augustus, a 2,000-year-old monument beside the Colosseum.

Persons: Ivan, Hayley, ”, Gennaro Sangiuliano, Hayley ”, Sangiuliano, commesso, k2apyx026A — Gennaro Sangiuliano, UK . Police “, “, ” Sangiuliano, Augustus, CNN’s Sharon Braithwaite Organizations: CNN, . Culture, Ministry, Culture, Piazza Venezia, Carabinieri, UK . Police, ” Locations: shockwaves, England, Irish, American

☆ Sorry, pizza purists — a fresco from Pompeii shows Romans were eating a precursor to pizza 2,000 years ago with fruit that resembles pineapple
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A fresco in Pompeii revealed a surprising feast: a bready food that looks like a pizza. It may not qualify as pizza as Pompeii didn't have access to tomatoes or mozzarella, researchers said. The food may be a pizza ancestor, which seems to have been covered in fruit, they said. Parco Archeologico di PompeiThe fresco, which has maintained its vibrant colors throughout the years, is a rare find for archaeologists. Pompeii "never ceases to amaze," said Italian culture minister, Gennaro Sangiuliano, in the press release about the fresco.

Persons: —, Pompeo, plater, Gabriel Zuchtriegel, Gino Sorbillo, Zuchtriegel, hasn't, Gennaro Sangiuliano Organizations: Service, Art, Guardian, Heritage Locations: Italy, Naples, Xenia, Regio IX

☆ Italian police blame couple from England for Colosseum graffiti
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] A general view of the Colosseum, in Rome, Italy May 30, 2023. REUTERS/Remo Casilli/File PhotoROME, June 29 (Reuters) - Italian police have identified a couple from England as the likely culprits after graffiti was scribbled on a wall at the Colosseum in Rome last week, prompting widespread anger. Italy's Carabinieri police said they had been helped to identify the couple by photographic evidence but did not name them. A police source said the man had been placed under formal investigation but the couple had left the country before the authorities could catch up with them. "This act was offensive to everyone around the world who appreciates the value of archaeology, monuments and history," said Italian Culture Minister Gennaro Sangiuliano.

Persons: Remo Casilli, Ivan, Hayley, Gennaro Sangiuliano, Emilio Parodi, Keith Weir, Conor Humphries Organizations: REUTERS, Thomson Locations: Rome, Italy, England, Italian

☆ Italy vows to find and punish tourist who defaced Colosseum wall
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ROME, June 27 (Reuters) - Italian authorities are looking for a tourist who scribbled graffiti on a wall of the Colosseum, with Culture Minister Gennaro Sangiuliano calling for exemplary punishment for the so-far unidentified man. The tourist was caught in a video, posted on social media on Saturday, scratching his and his girlfriend's name with a key on an internal wall of the ancient Roman stone amphitheatre. He can be seen smiling, even as the author of the video, speaking in English and using swear words, reprimands him. [1/5]A tourist holding keys carves on the wall of the Colosseum in Rome, Italy June 23, 2023 in this picture obtained from social media. Built 2,000 years ago, the Colosseum was the biggest amphitheatre in the Roman empire and used to host gladiator fights, executions and animal hunts.

Persons: Gennaro Sangiuliano, Ivan, Hayley, Sangiuliano, Ryan Lutz, ANSA, Alvise, Keith Weir Organizations: Thomson Locations: Rome, Italy

☆ Tourist filmed carving his girlfriend’s name into Rome’s Colosseum
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( Amarachi Orie | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Italy’s culture minister is calling for a man to be “identified and sanctioned” after he was filmed allegedly carving his and his fiancée’s names into the Colosseum in Rome. The inscription read “Ivan+Haley 23,” according to Italian news agency ANSA. The alleged incident took place on Friday, and police were alerted by videos appearing on social media, ANSA reported. If convicted of a crime, the man could face a fine of at least €15,000 ($16,360) or up to five years in prison, the news agency said. A similar incident occurred in 2020, when an Irish tourist was accused of vandalizing the Colosseum, after security staff spotted him allegedly carving his initials into the ancient structure and reported him to the police.

Persons: Gennaro Sangiuliano, “, ”, Ivan, Haley, ANSA Organizations: CNN Locations: Rome, Irish

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