The 55-year-old man picked the edge of Fontana dei Catecumeni to grab a bite to eat around 1 a.m. local time on Saturday, local police told CNN.
Officers intervened after the man was “enthusiastic about drinking and eating in part of the fountain”, in violation of rules designed to protect the monumental fountain.
The fountain was built in 1588-89 by architect and sculptor Giacomo della Porta and restored in 1997.
It is protected by regulations first introduced in the 1970s to protect historic fountains, statues and other monuments.
Starting in 2019, updated regulations are in place focused on maintaining the city’s “environmental courtesy.”
Local police said in a statement that they had carried out more than 300 tests over the weekend and that street patrols had enforced rules such as limiting the volume of music played in bars.
The law also includes a ban on drinking in the streets, holding pub tours and taking a dip in the city’s fountains.
Police can issue fines or even ban people from certain areas for up to 48 hours. Repeat offenders can be banned for up to 60 days.
When the “décorme” regulation was introduced, the city council said it was “to address the many aspects of urban life, paying particular attention to respecting the capital’s artistic and cultural heritage”. .
They were also intended to address symptoms of overtourism, a buzzword in the Eternal City as it struggles to cope with the sheer number of visitors. Before the outbreak, Rome was visited by about 10 million tourists each year.
There have been multiple recent incidents involving violations of updated laws.
In May, border police arrested a 37-year-old Saudi national at Milan’s international airport after his rented Maserati was abandoned down Rome’s famous Spanish Steps.
A month later, two US tourists were fined and temporarily banned from Rome’s city center for damaging stairs with electric scooters.
Source: www.cnn.com
