UNHOLY

Italians Rage at Tourist Making Sexual Moves on Statue of Bacchus

Ironically, the unidentified female was making moves on the Roman god of wine and fertility.

Italians are furious at newly posted photos of an unidentified female tourist making sexual moves on a historic statue of Bacchus, the Roman god of wine and fertility. The photos, shared by the Instagram account Welcome to Florence, show a woman in jean shorts and a black crop top grinding on and kissing the statue on a street corner near the Ponte Vecchio at night. Antonella Rinaldi, Florence’s superintendent of archaeology and fine arts, scoffed at the lewd display on the modern replica of the original 16th-century statue and said tourists need to respect all Italian artwork, even when it’s not the real deal. “Although I doubt this lady—whom I condemn—even knows the difference,” Rinaldi added. The woman’s impromptu dance party is reigniting debates about implementing tourism fees and respecting the culture of the vacation destination, which has a population of just under 400,000. Last year, roughly 1.5 million tourists flooded the city between June and September, crowding public spaces and swarming Florence’s narrow streets.