From ancient Rome to Renaissance Florence, some of the world's greatest treasures are falling into neglect.
Saturday, 4 December 2010
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Designated a Unesco World Heritage site, the Roman city of Pompeii was preserved by volcanic ash after Mount Vesuvius erupted in AD 79
Collapses at the ancient site of Pompeii underline what experts have been warning for years: Italy's priceless cultural heritage is slowly but surely disintegrating and the famous archeological site's decay is a metaphor for the nation.
With chunks falling off Rome's Colosseum and the seemingly inexorable decline and fall of Venice, the world looks on anxiously to see if the rot can be stopped. Few countries have a greater wealth of cultural and archaeological marvels than Italy, but experts warn that few nations are as complacent about them.
Outrage greeted news last month of the collapse the 2,000-year-old House of the Gladiators at Pompeii. For years, art historians have complained that the archaeological site just south of Naples was falling to bits. Inevitably, opposition newspapers such as La Repubblica, called the collapse a "world scandal" and blamed the conservative government of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi for cutting funding – and putting "unqualified people" in charge of Italy's cultural heritage. For "unqualified people" read: Sandro Bondi, the widely criticised Berlusconi loyalist and Culture Minister.
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