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Climate activists glued to one of the Vatican’s most cherished artworks
Two protestors from the Italian climate activism organisation Ultima Generazione have glued themselves to a famous sculpture in the Vatican, according to a press release from the organisation.
The incident reportedly occurred last week as two protestors – a 26-year-old female known as Lura and an unnamed older man – who were joined by a group of reporters, gained access to the Roman city-state and glued their hands to the base of the sculpture, Laocoön and His Sons.
Shortly thereafter, the sculpture area of the Vatican museum was evacuated, and the two activists had their phones confiscated. Phones are thought to be used for video documentation of the protest to allow the campaigners more safety from the authorities.
“Laura” recently graduated with a Master’s degree in Art History and said that she felt duty bound to protest because she felt her future, both personally and professionally, had been robbed by government officials who have continued to ignore the climate crisis. She explained that the statue she and the other activist chose to adhere to spoke to this reality.
The sculpture, Laocoön and His Sons, depicts Laocoön, a key figure in the myth of the war of Troy. A Trojan priest, Laocoön, advised his fellow Trojans to set fire to the Trojan horse that had been sent from the Greeks as a gift which, in reality, hid a band of enemy soldiers. In the myth, Athena punishes him for his continued efforts to undermine the Greeks’ plans and sends a serpent to strangle him and his two sons.
“The alarm signal went unheard, the ambassador of danger and his children died crushed in the silence of unconsciousness, and the entire city of Troy was set on fire, causing the death of many naive but innocent people,” Laura said in the release.
“As witnesses of a crisis ignored for decades, we have chosen to draw attention to our message by drawing close to the figure of Laocoon, the seer who suffered extreme repression for having tried to warn his fellow citizens of an impending catastrophe,” said an unnamed Ultima Generazione activist in the release.
“There will be no open museums, no art, no beauty in a world plagued by the climate and ecological emergency. Drought, floods, fires, pollution and scarcity of resources will take over if radical choices are not made in this regard.”
‘Laocoön and His Sons’ is one of the Vatican’s most valuable artworks. It was discovered in 1506 and identified to be the masterpiece referred to by Pliny the Elder in his writings. After its discovery, it was bought by Pope Julius II and displayed as the centrepiece of the Vatican’s sculpture garden. It was thought to have been made around 40-30 B.C.E.
