Americans have a terrible reputation abroad. Not that that reputation is unearned, exactly. Once, when I was studying abroad, a classmate of mine refereed to a local fish sandwich as “vom on toast.” Sometimes, we are just the absolute worst. But two California women decided to dig the knife in that wound a little deeper — literally — by carving their initials into the Colosseum in Rome. That’s not even the worst part, though. No, see, after they were done defacing one of the New Seven Wonders of the World, they proceeded to take a selfie with their historically blasphemous graffiti.
First reported by the Italian newspaper La Stampa, the women, aged 21 and 25, somehow didn’t understand that carving their initials into the Colosseum would be frowned upon due to the fact that the building is not a “traditional museum.” According to the article, The Special Superintendency for the Archaeological Heritage of Rome released an unbelievably blasé statement saying:
Museums are treated like churches, sacred places where there are things of great value. Whereas the Colosseum is an incomplete building which has already been robbed… It’s not an original wall but it’s nevertheless antique.
While the women were given the proverbial slap on the wrist by Archaeological Heritage, they may face up to roughly $22,000 in fines — similar to the Russian tourist who carved his initial into the Colosseum just last year. That is a lot of money for a picture, no matter how many “likes” it could potentially get.
But let’s be real, the only crime that actually occurred here was the fact that these women felt the need to take a selfie after doing this. I mean, come on. I’m pretty sure this one piece of evidence proves that these ladies were straight up hammered. No sober person thinks that taking a selfie with the public property you defaced is a good idea. Hell, most sober people don’t think selfies are a good idea, period. They probably had some white wine, stumbled into the Colosseum, and mistook it for the wall of a frat basement. Could happen to anyone (not really). Let’s just be grateful they didn’t have spray paint, highlighters, or glitter on their persons.
In conclusion: USA! USA!.
[via Elite Daily, La Stampa]
Image via Shutterstock
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