Damages to cultural centers and sites are not only rebarbative but a setback to the efforts of several individuals who are saving them for the future. After the Sit and Run incident at an Italian museum, just the previous week, and the inane incident of a couple carving initials on the Colosseum, among other such incidents, one incident that leaves the prestigious Uffizi in shatter is the ‘slight damage’ of a late 17th-century work by Anton Domenico Gabbiani.
The incident occurred on the 21st of this June when a tourist was trying to capture a selfie as he happened to trip and fall over, damaging the Portrait of Ferdinando de’ Medici Grand Prince of Tuscany.
The painting is usually kept at the Pitti Palace, however, it accompanied the others in the chamber to echo the aura of Florence and Europe. Eighteenth-Century Arts exhibition at the gallery.
Now under restoration for the reconstruction of the right foot of the subject, which has been gashed by the viewer, the painting will be put back on display to accompany the exhibition in a few days. As per Corriere Fiorentino, it is only a minor damage and the viewer had already been formally reported to the carabinieri.
Addressing this concern, the museum director Simone Verde will take action to curtail selfie-taking, further ensuring that such damages do not recur. He said,
“The problem of visitors coming to museums to make memes or take selfies for social media is rampant: we will set very precise limits, preventing behavior that is not compatible with the sense of our institutions and respect for cultural heritage.”
Featured Image: Minor Damage of Portrait of Ferdinando de’ Medici Grand Prince of Tuscany by Anton Domenico Gabbiani; Unknown Author, via Finestre sull’Arte.
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