We have previously discussed the destructive narcissism of tourists who write their names on historic locations or art. This includes the Chinese tourist who wrote on an ancient Egyptian temple or the Russian who carved his name into the Colosseum. An unidentified 55-year-old man from Missouri snapped the finger off a 14th or 15th century marble masterpiece when he decided to measure it by grabbing the hand. The latest victim is a 126-year-old statue of Dom Sebastian that crashed to the ground and shattered after man climbed on top of its pedestal to take a selfie with the 16th century Portuguese King. Now, no one else will be able to see the beautiful piece of art and history outside the ornate Rossio railway station in central Lisbon.
The crime occurred just before midnight and the man attempted to flee but was caught. The statue of the king stood in a niche between two horseshoe-shaped arches at the entrance to the station. It was completed in 1890.
It was the final sad chapter for Dom Sebastiao. He only ruled for a short time though had an impressive run that included military legal reforms. He ruled only between 1557 and 1578 and then, ignoring the advice of some of his generals, he took his troops into the interior of the Moroccan empire in a crusade and was last seen charging the enemy at the Battle of Alcácer Quibir (Battle of the Three Kings). His army was devastated and he was killed but his body was never found.
I have long advocated for more significant punishment for such tourists, who destroy art and historic sites as well as natural locations. I understand that there are thoughtless and often impulsive acts. However, we need greater deterrence if we are to protect the world’s most precious sites and art.
If you click the link to the Rossio rail station, you will see that the tourist had to climb up as high as his head to get next to the miniature statue. This was no mere accident. For a 55 year old man to do this shows extreme disrespect. I hope the Judge makes him pay to replace the statue.
Isaac – where they farm oysters – that´s where we´re staying – about 20 steps from the beach…..I can´t wait! They´ve got bikes we can ride and the family that owns our rental let us eat the vegetables from their garden last year…heaven!
Reisling
Visit St. Malo and drive down the coast, islands, La Rochelle, etc. There are some really neat biking areas south of Bordeaux in and along the bays where they farm oysters.
Gorilla Glue….. 🙂
Statue can be restored.
Punishment should be 5 years of cleaning tourists’ latrines.
Given the massive and never ending influx of Muslims into Europe, it was only a matter of time before these statues were destroyed and demolished by the invading throngs of throwbacks engulfing these societies, anyway. These priceless and unique statues are viewed as an affront to Islam, so this clumsy turd just kicked the party off.
bam bam – a significant amount of Greek statues are actually Roman copies of Greek statues. They have been broken before. Or melted down for weaponry. Or resized by the new owner (usually after a conquest).
All of these easily avoidable tragic and sometimes despicable incidents should not be blamed on the technology of “selfies.” The “selfie” has existed for long before the iPhone. You could just as well have taken a “selfie” in the old days by using a 35mm camera with a timer, or even just presetting the focus and shutter speed and clicking the shutter button with the camera lens facing to yourself. Sure, the ease of the current technology makes the “selfie” taking more ubiquitous, but I still don’t think the technology is to blame. Rather, the problem is that people have become more narcissistic and dumber than earlier generations. I’m sure there were incidents of people in the past that were using one of these 35mm timers, and while facing the lens, where they backed into something, like a swimming pool, but anybody back then who heard about something like that learned to watch where they were walking. Today, large numbers of people learn nothing from the mistakes of others or even those made by themselves.
126 years isn’t very old by European standards.
Issac- so true about the tourists nowadays! I first went to the Louvre in 1983 on a school trip. We had the whole place to ourselves. Went back in 2002 and was shocked at the masses of people. Going to the Atlantic coast in June – it’s low season and empty and absolutely beautiful!
Selfie, selfie, bo belfie…
Back in the day, 1967 when I travelled to Europe, tourists were the same but there were fewer of them. The big difference was that tourists were less of an impact on what they were visiting, perhaps because there were fewer but most importantly because they, most of them, knew where they were, not in Podunk Indiana. There was a semblance of a degree of awe at being in a foreign land and connecting to centuries of history, maybe even with a smattering of historical reference. When I lived in France for many years in the late 70’s and early 80’s there were far more tourists and the experience was polluted with greased palms and rich Arabs. It was not the same but nothing compared with a recent trip to France and Italy. Now technology has completely polluted the experience of being in a foreign land. Thousands of mindless people wander through Paris and other sacred places following cameras on sticks as they communicate with their friends in the very places they spent thousands of their dollars to leave. I doubt that any of them really understands where they are as instead of gazing at Notre Dame and drifting back through history and Victor Hugo to imagine how life was in this storied place, they are focused only on being back home with whomever they have called on the insidious i phone. Thank you Steve Jobs and the rest of the geniuses for ruining being there. There is no there there anymore. When I return to Europe it is only to visit the places tourists with those disgusting cameras on sticks don’t go.
As for the imbecile that broke the statue, ten years in a Portuguese prison for destruction of property that is priceless. I am serious and still lenient.
A truly shattering experience for the tourist.
What a beautiful shatter pattern. Whenever we break dishes in our house, food or no, we are sure to snap a picture or two. Art is subjective, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and, most importantly, NOTHING LASTS FOREVER.
It is too bad that this happened to a one of a kind, but I can not get upset. Maybe Portugal should rethink it’s art-border laws. Build a velvet wall. That sends a clear message- you don’t cross the velvet rope.
One of my business fantasies is to have great works mass produced on the cheap so that people can satiate their desire to destroy art. Prices based on what you want to destroy, and how. You can be very creative at our destructive facilities.
I say good riddance to the statue. Anyone who wore those funny looking clothes doesn’t deserve a statue. They should put up a statue of me instead.
Some American museums want you to touch the art. Some don’t. Just because it is old does not make it historic or of any artistic value. If it fell, it was badly balanced. Might be time they replaced it anyway.
Paul Schulte: ” If it fell, it was badly balanced.”
On the other hand it might have been perfectly balanced, in the sense of the center of gravity precisely above the center of the base, and still tipped over when the weight of an average man was applied at some random orientation.
Maybe some one with a physics or engineering background can help us here.
I believe an object will remain stable and standing so long as the center of gravity remains within the area of the base. A problem can occur when mass is applied to the object so that the new center of gravity falls beyond the area of the base.
I would argue the only thing off-balanced in this situation was the tourist.
Well that is one way to escape the cliches’ and a make a selfie that is truly unique! Bet no body else posts a selfie like that.
What does century old statuary go for these days, anyway? Any comps in the Cristie’s catalog?
If you are in some village without a tall building then drown them in an outhouse.
These people need to be stoned to death and then thrown off the top of buildings. I do not mean stone them to death with drugs. I refer to the act of throwing stones at them until they are knocked cold and die.