Tourists posing for selfie wreck Italian monument

The early 18th century statue of Hercules before (left) and after it was damaged (right)

in the accident [Credit: milano.corriere.it]

TANN

you might also like

A pair of tourists in Italy seriously damaged a famous monument featuring statues of Hercules by clambering onto it in order to snap a "selfie".A large marble crown which topped the "Statue of the Two Hercules" monument in the town of Cremona in northern Italy was brought crashing to the ground after the tourists climbed onto it to pose for the photograph.The crown sat on top of a large marble shield which is flanked by two statues depicting Hercules.The monument, located on Piazza del Comune, a medieval square at the heart of Cremona, is one of the city's best known symbols.Police are investigating the accident, while experts were on Monday expected to assess the extent of the damage and give an estimate of how much repairs are likely to cost.The statues were sculpted in the early 18th century and were placed on top of one of the gates that led into Cremona.They were later removed from the gate and since the 1960s have been kept in the Loggia dei Militia, formerly the headquarters of the town's militia, on the main piazza.Cremona is best known for its violin-makers, in a tradition dating back centuries.The most famous was Antonio Stradivari, who made around 1,000 violins, cellos, violas and harps, and whose instruments are often referred to by the Latinised form of his name, Stradivarius.