An 18th century statue was knocked down and smashed by a tourist who walked backwards to take a selfie with it.
The incident took place at the National Museum of Ancient Art in Lisbon.
The Brazilian tourist tried to take a selfie but staggered backwards into the sculpture of Saint Michael that was on a pedestal in one of the chambers of the museum.
It fell to the floor and shattered into several pieces.
Nuno Miguel Rodrigues, who was in the chamber when the incident happened, took a picture of the smashed statue and posted it on Facebook.
He said: 'It's the price to be paid for free entrances on the first Sunday of every month.'
Jose Alberto Seabra Carvalho, a deputy director of the National Museum of Ancient Art told local media: 'I've been working in the museum for many years and cannot recall anything similar happening.'
According to experts the damage done to the statue is irreversible.
In September, museum director Antonio Filipe Pimentel, warned the authorities the institution was under staffed.
He said: 'There are only 64 people for 84 chambers open to public. I am very sure one day we will see hazards in the museum. It will happen because we're playing with our heritage.'
The case is currently being investigated and the name of the man who knocked down the statue has not been made public.
The incident took place at the National Museum of Ancient Art in Lisbon.
The Brazilian tourist tried to take a selfie but staggered backwards into the sculpture of Saint Michael that was on a pedestal in one of the chambers of the museum.
It fell to the floor and shattered into several pieces.
Nuno Miguel Rodrigues, who was in the chamber when the incident happened, took a picture of the smashed statue and posted it on Facebook.
He said: 'It's the price to be paid for free entrances on the first Sunday of every month.'
Jose Alberto Seabra Carvalho, a deputy director of the National Museum of Ancient Art told local media: 'I've been working in the museum for many years and cannot recall anything similar happening.'
According to experts the damage done to the statue is irreversible.
In September, museum director Antonio Filipe Pimentel, warned the authorities the institution was under staffed.
He said: 'There are only 64 people for 84 chambers open to public. I am very sure one day we will see hazards in the museum. It will happen because we're playing with our heritage.'
The case is currently being investigated and the name of the man who knocked down the statue has not been made public.
Music: "Suonatore di Liuto" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Source: DailyMail , Correiodolago
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