Portrait in Florence allegedly damaged by visitor taking a selfie

An eighteenth -century oil painting would have been damaged after a museum visitor triggered a selfie.

The Galerie des Uffizi de Florence said that a tourist fell back while trying to “make a meme in front” of a portrait of Ferdinando de ‘Medici, Grand Prince of Tuscany, by Anton Domenico Gabbiani.

The museum explained that damage could be repaired quickly, but director Simone Verde warned that the restrictions on the behavior of visitors could be imposed in the future.

He said in a press release: “The problem of visitors coming to museums to make memes or take selfies for social media is endemic.

“We will set very precise limits, prevent behavior which is not compatible with the meaning of our institutions and respect for cultural heritage,” he added.

The portrait was exposed as part of an exhibition called Florence and Europe: 18th century arts at the Uffizi.

According to the gallery, the visitor was identified by the police and reported to the judicial authorities.

The exhibition, which was made up of around 150 works of art, is now closed until July 2 after the incident. The paint will be repaired in the meantime, so it is ready to go back.

The exhibition will then take place, as originally planned, until November 28.

Earlier this year in Palazzo Maffei, Verona, A man apparently slipped and fell on a jewelry chair by the Italian artist Nicola Bolla.

He had taken photos with a woman, pretending to sit on the chair.

The director of the Vanessa Carlon museum said: “Sometimes we lose our brain to take a photo, and we do not think of the consequences.

“Of course, it was an accident, but these two people left without talking to us – it’s not an accident.”