Destruction of Golden Candelabras at St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican Worth 30,000 Pounds
A man jumped onto the main altar of St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican and destroyed golden candelabras worth 30,000 pounds.
Videos circulating on social media show an attack on the golden sculptures at St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican. The video indicates that this incident occurred on February 7 and was recently published on social media.
The man who destroyed the candelabras climbed onto the main altar of St. Peter’s Basilica and, after ascending the altar, removed a cloth from it and destroyed six golden candelabras worth 30,000 pounds. This altar is actually considered one of the most sacred places in Vatican, built above the tomb of Apostle Peter. Above this altar stands a bronze baldachin with a height of 95 feet, designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini.
Vatican News also wrote: “The twisted columns in the baldachin’s design were Gian Bernini’s choice in the seventeenth century, inspired by a famous monument known as the ‘Holy Column,’ a column that is said to have existed during Jesus Christ’s preaching in the Temple of Jerusalem.”
St. Peter’s Basilica, which had recently completed its restoration ahead of Christmas celebrations and the year 2025, came under attack again, and this is not the first time destruction has occurred in this church. In 1972, the famous sculpture by Michelangelo was severely damaged when László Tóth, a Hungarian geologist, attacked it with a hammer, but this artwork has been protected behind bulletproof glass ever since.
Matteo Bruni, director of Vatican’s press office, also referred to the man who attacked the church’s altar and destroyed the candelabras as someone with serious mental disability and announced that Vatican police arrested him and handed him over to Italian authorities.
