Four Rivers Fountain, Superintendence clarifies: damage caused by wear and tear on a pin

There is no act of vandalism or deliberate damage behind the disfigurement of the lion of the Fountain of the Four Rivers, Gian Lorenzo Bernini’s masterpiece. Finally clarifying what happened is the Sovrintendenza Capitolina, which explained how the damage occurred due towear and tear on a metal pin that caused part of the lion’s snout, which stands alongside the personification of the Nile, to detach. The damage occurred on August 18, and Superintendence technicians immediately recovered the missing fragment, and restoration is scheduled to begin next week, according to the Superintendent’s Office.

“The fragments were detached on August 18 due to wear and tear of a metal anchor pin and not due to an act of vandalism,” the Capitoline Superintendency stated on Twitter. “They were recovered immediately by our technicians and are in the laboratory to be prepared for the reattachment work scheduled to begin Jan. 13.” However, it remains to be understood why there was no prompt notification of the damage suffered by the monument and why there was such a long wait for the restoration work.

Pictured, left: the intact lion (ph. Francesco Bini, 2006 photo), right: the lion without the jawbone (ph. @larissaromeguide via Instagram, Dec. 5, 2020 photo)

Four Rivers Fountain, Superintendence clarifies: damage caused by wear and tear on a pin

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