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A tourist has been labeled “disrespectful” after lifting up an ancient chunk of marble for a photo-op in Naxos, Greece, as seen in a concerning Facebook post.
“They have crossed the line,” Kiriakos Jr. Boulamatsis, a Naxos resident who took the photo, captioned the post. “Wake up before it’s too late.”
The desecration reportedly occurred at the iconic Portara, a 20-foot-high marble doorway on the islet of Palatia.
It’s the last remnant of a temple to Apollo, which was constructed between the 6th to 7th centuries BC before the project was abandoned due to political upheaval, according to the Greek Reporter.
In the appalling pic, the shirtless bozo is seen holding up a massive slab of stone seemingly taken from the grounds surrounding the cultural landmark as a woman snaps photos of him.
The gate-crasher’s photo-op sparked a backlash on Facebook with one critic calling the defilement “disrespectful in every way!”
Another wrote, “It feels like people are becoming more stupid year after year.”
“Naxos is increasingly becoming a Disneyland and the visitors probably have money, but no respect and decency,” said a third.
The photo’s uploader Boulamatsis, felt that the brazen act highlighted the lack of adequate protection measures at the site, which is free to visit but lacks formal security or ticketing.
He called on Naxos authorities to immediately deploy security guards along with other security measures.
“Don’t wait until the season is over,” he declared. “Do it before the month changes!”
Boulamatsis also claimed that had this occurred in another country, the offender would’ve been “fined and deported.”
According to Naxos Mayor Dimitris Lianos, the Ministry of Culture was made aware of the incident and has since posted a guard to the gate — although it’s yet unclear how long they will remain there.
“What the Municipality and the residents of the island want, and we have submitted it to the Ministry of Culture, is for an on-site restoration and promotion of this particular archaeological site,” Lianos told local media, per the Daily Mail. “That is, for it to be maintained and operated in an organized manner, with a ticket and security, so as to ensure its protection and generate revenue that will be attributed to Culture.’
In a similarly egregious desecration earlier this summer, a clumsy tourist accidentally put his hand through a priceless 300-year-old painting while posing for a picture.
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