Well, that may be an exaggeration, but Roman officials are at loggerheads with the government over who should own the Colosseum, which brings in EU$35million a year in ticket sales.

The government has loudly declared that all state monuments belong to the country, and Rome should not be solely profiting from its fortunately placed historical sites. However, the city’s culture assessor, Umberto Croppi, declared, “Rome bears the weight of millions of visitors, without receiving any direct benefit”. Clearly, the tourist dollars spent on flights, accommodation, eating, drinking and shopping are not registering on Croppi’s radar…

The battle over the Colosseum is similar to an earlier tug-of-war over Michelangelo’s statue of David. The confusion has arisen since Italy‘s government began selling monuments to move forward into federalism.

I just hope it will still be fine for me to pay my money in November to go in and gaze at the home of the Gladiator.

Related Articles

• Roman politicians gear up for clash over Colosseum cash (guardian.co.uk)
• Italy seeks Colosseum sponsors, raises tourist taxes (seattletimes.nwsource.com)