Pillar at Pompei villa collapses

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Pillar at Pompei villa collapses

Dec 22, 2011, 14:39 GMT

Rome - A pillar has collapsed at one of Pompeii's most well-preserved buildings, officials in Italy said Thursday, the latest in a series of accidents to befall the treasured archaeological site.

The collapse took place on an external area of the House of Loreius Tiburtinus - also known as the House of Octavius Quartio - the office of Archaeological Heritage of Naples and Pompeii, said in a statement.

Officials were in the process of inspecting the causes and extent of the damage, the statement added.

The House of Loreius Tiburtinus is renowned for its artwork and large gardens.

In October a portion of a wall, situated near Pompeii's Porta di Nola entrance, collapsed due to damage by heavy rainfall.

Late last year, several walls and buildings collapsed at the site. One of these was a frescoed house where gladiators once prepared for combat, the Schola Armaturarum.

Concern has been mounting internationally that not enough is being done to protect Italy's historical sites, as the heavily indebted country struggles to cope with recession and the effects of the global economic crisis.

Once a prosperous Roman city, Pompeii was destroyed in 79 AD by an eruption of Mount Vesuvius, which killed thousands of people and buried the city in six metres of volcanic ash.


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