Tourist Carves His Family’s Initials Onto a Wall in Pompeii

While visiting the ancient city of Pompeii, a British man carved his family’s initials onto one of the historic site’s walls.

The man had etched the letters onto the House of the Vestals, a lavish structure located in Pompeii’s northwest corner near the Herculaneum gate. Like the rest of the ancient city, the residence was preserved in ash after Mount Vesuvius’ eruption in 79 C.E.

Earlier this month, staffers caught the 37-year-old tourist and reported him to the public prosecutor’s office in Torre Annunziata. Under a new Italian law, visitors who deface monuments can face steep penalties of up to €40,000 (nearly $44,000)—and up to €60,000 for more serious acts of destruction. The government can use the proceeds from these fines to repair the damage.

According to the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera’s Gennaro Scala, the man apologized to authorities, explaining that he had wanted to leave behind a record of his family’s trip to the ancient city. He had carved three sets of initials—his own, and those of his two daughters—onto the wall. He had also written out the date: August 7, 2024.

#Pompei - Incide le sue iniziali sulla Casa delle Vestali, denunciato turista inglese LEGGI LA NEWS: https://t.co/FEl5WzNTfh pic.twitter.com/p8ScjXHxhR

— Stabia Channel (@StabiaChannel) August 8, 2024

The British man is certainly not the first tourist to cause such a stir. In recent years, several travelers have etched messages into some of Italy’s most treasured historic sites. 

Earlier this summer, a man from Kazakhstan carved his initials onto Pompeii’s House of Ceii, an ancient structure known for its vibrant and colorful frescoes. Around the same time, a Dutch tourist used a permanent marker to draw graffiti on a wall in the city of Herculaneum, which was also destroyed by the 79 C.E. eruption.

Some perpetrators have claimed ignorance about the weight of their actions. Last year, another British tourist carved his name beside his girlfriend’s name on the Colosseum. After getting caught, the man wrote a letter of apology to Rome’s mayor: He claimed that he didn’t realize “the seriousness of the deed committed” and didn’t learn of “the antiquity of the monument” until later, per the Guardian’s Angela Giuffrida.

Weeks later, a 17-year-old Swiss tourist carved her initials into the ancient amphitheater, as the Italian newspaper La Repubblica’s Romina Marceca reported. A tour guide filmed the incident and confronted the girl’s parents.

“Do you know that what your daughter has just done is illegal and carries a fine of up to €15,000 and up to five years imprisonment?” the tour guide, David Battaglino, asked them, as he later recalled to the Art Newspaper’s Gareth Harris. “When I saw a member of security, I quickly approached him, showed him the video and pointed out the family.”

In recent years, Italy has been struggling with overtourism, particularly at some of its most popular historic sites. Officials have been experimenting with new ways to control the crowds. A few months ago, for instance, Venice instituted a controversial day-tripper fee. Meanwhile, new train routes will help move tourists between some of Italy’s most popular destinations in a more sustainable way.

Julia Binswanger | READ MORE

Julia Binswanger is a freelance arts and culture reporter based in Chicago. Her work has been featured in WBEZ, Chicago magazine, Rebellious magazine and PC magazine.