Tourist fined for selfie that damaged 500-year-old Italian fountain

A German tourist has been fined for climbing up an iconic statue and taking a selfie. The incident happened in Florence’s Piazza della Signoria when the tourist decided to climb the famous Fountain of Neptune.

CCTV Video footage shows the unnamed 22-year-old jumping a barrier and climbing up the base of the fountain onto the plinth. He then stands briefly for the photograph before jumping down.

Unfortunately, the man damaged the statue when he jumped down. In a Tweet, the mayor of Florence, Dario Nardella, stated how the fountain was damaged. A chunk of marble was knocked off Neptune’s chariot, and one of the horse’s hoofs was also cracked, he said. Because of this, the tourist will have to pay a €5000 ($5355) fine.

Questo turista ha pensato bene di salire sul Nettuno per un selfie. Per fortuna nessun danno, il sistema di allarme ha funzionato. Grazie alle telecamere del Comune è stato individuato e pagherà una multa salata. Contro il vandalismo sui beni culturali non ci sono giustificazioni pic.twitter.com/QVvBNYaygI

— Dario Nardella (@DarioNardella) September 4, 2023

Duke Cosimo I de’ Medici commissioned the fountain in 1559. The Medici family ruled Florence and were patrons of many renowned Renaissance artists and sculptors of the time.

People are willing to do many stupid things for the sake of a selfie. Getting too close to wildlife, falling off buildings and generally being a nuisance. Last year a man had to be rescued from Mount Vesuvius. He slipped into the main caldera when he lost his footing taking a selfie.

Fortunately, this tourist wasn’t endangering anyone’s lives, just causing damage to priceless historical monuments.

[Via Petapixel Image: Wikibusters, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons]