Pompeii fresco chipped off wall
Print Edition
THIEVES have stolen part of an ancient fresco from Pompeii, breaking in to a closed area of the UNESCO World Heritage landmark in Italy and chipping off a portrait of a Greek deity.
A custodian doing rounds last week discovered “the removal of a part of a fresco in the House of Neptune,” where a depiction of the goddess Artemis had been “chiseled off with a metallic object,” the Roman site’s curator department said in a statement yesterday.
Police have launched an investigation into the theft of the 20-centimeter wide fragment in an area closed to the public.
The discovery sparked outrage in Italy, with the Il Messaggero newspaper describing it as “a shame for the country,” made doubly embarrassing by the recent appointment of a new “super-superintendent” for the site.
The theft comes on the back of a series of collapses in the long-neglected ruins near Naples, which have drawn international concern.
The Temple of Venus and a tomb were damaged earlier this month after heavy rains, prompting the European Union to urge Italy to “take care of Pompeii, because it is emblematic not only for Europe but also for the world.”
Italy said it would unblock two million euros (US$2.8 million) to oil the wheels of an EU-backed project.
Last year, conservation workers began a 105-million-euro makeover of Pompeii, funded by the EU to the tune of 41.8 million euros. But according to the Corriere della Sera daily, only 588,000 euros have been spent so far.
The project is seen as crucial to the survival of the site in the shadow of Mount Vesuvius, the volcano that both destroyed and preserved the city of Pompeii in 79 AD.
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