Michelangelo's David 'May Crack'

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                                               Michelangelo's David 'may crack' 






By Mark Duff
BBC News, Milan 
Sept. 19, 2008





Major restoration works were carried out in 2004



Michelangelo's famous statue of David could collapse because of its exposure to mass tourism, Italian experts say.

They say the massive statue of the naked boy-warrior is in danger because of its size, shape and the weakness of the marble from which it was carved.

But they warn that the greatest risk comes from the footfall of many visitors who troop past it each day at Florence's Galleria dell'Accademia.

The experts want to protect the statue by insulating it from the vibrations.

This would cost about 1m euros (£785,000). Otherwise David could topple over, engineers from the University of Perugia say.

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A custom-built laser scanner, mounted atop a 20-foot truss, scans the face of Michelangelo's David.

(Photo credit: The Digital Michelangelo Project)

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