Oops! American tourist accidentally snaps finger off 600-year-old marble statue in Florence museum

Tourist was measuring the finger when he broke it off the statue

The sculpture was created in the 14th or 15th century by Florentine Giovanni d'Ambrogio.

An American tourist has caused outrage in Florence, Italy, after accidentally snapping a finger off a priceless 600-year-old statue of the Virgin Mary at a museum.

The unnamed tourist, a 55-year-old from New Fairfield, Connecticut, was attempting to comparing his finger to that on a marble sculpture at the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo (Museum of the Works of the Cathedral) when the digit broke off.



A security guard spotted the tourist and tried to stop him, but it was too late.

Oops: An American tourist broke the pinky finger off a 600-year-old marble statue at a Florentine museum over the weekend. A museum administrator said the repair of the statue will be exceedingly complex

The sculpture, seen here before the accident, was created in the 14th or 15th century by Florentine Giovanni d'Ambrogio

The American, originally from Missouri and who was on holiday with his wife and another couple at the time of the mishap, was mortified and apologized profusely, fearing prosecution and a massive fine for damaging the historic piece of work.



The sculpture was created in the 14th or 15th century by Florentine Giovanni d'Ambrogio.

Timothy Verdon, an American who is the head of the Diocesan Office of Sacred Art and Church Cultural Heritage and the Cathedral Foundation Museum in Florence, condemned his countryman's behavior.



He said the damaged finger was not an original, but was actually recast later.



He said he is not sure how much the repair would cost - or whether it was even possible.



The broken statue was sculpted by Florentine Giovanni d'Ambrogio. The finger itself was a cast, installed after the sculpting of the original

The statue is housed at the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, next to the legendary Duomo Santa Maria del Fiore

'In a globalized world like ours, the fundamental rules for visiting a museum have been forgotten, that is, "Do not touch the works,"' he fumed.



Many of the most precious works in Florence are actually kept away from the public under lock and key - with casts set out in museums.



The originals that are available for public viewing are kept under close guard.