Pompeii has been making mostly negative headlines in the local and national press for a few days now. In Pompeii Scavi, the days of the undisputed Star Massimo OSANNA appear to have passed since his catwalk appearances on TV and in national newspapers. We are talking about the General Director of the Archaeological Park of Pompeii and Head “en chef” of the Great Pompeii Project. His latest flash in the limelight was the rather modest inauguration of the restoration works of Villa Regina, the Roman Villa Rustica which, with the annexed Museum, is a product of the years of post-earthquake reconstruction in the Vesuvian area. We therefore take this opportunity to inform the readers of this newspaper that the Vesuvian territory has also been enriched by the Terzignese Territorial Archaeological Museum, or more simply the MATT of Terzigno. It is worth visiting. We will then talk about it with due attention.
In the meantime, what are the negative things that concern the ancient city? Well, in the meantime there is more than one and we list them for you. The first is the bad international figure that the Management of the Archaeological Park made on the occasion of the visit to the Excavations of the Nobel Prize winner Bruce Beutler.
He was “snubbed” by the superintendent Massimo Osanna, as the headline in Il Mattino di Napoli clearly states. Bruce Beutler is an American immunologist, Nobel Prize winner in 2011. He was a guest of the Neapolitan oncologist Antonio Giordano, an internationally renowned geneticist in Philadelphia. In short, a couple of true Stars of Medicine who came to Pompeii to see the ruins of the Ancient City. It seems that Osanna, warned of the imminent visit, refused to meet the American scientist “letting it be known that he was not interested” writes Il Mattino. A serious and unjustifiable attitude. Far from the centuries-old tradition of hospitality of the Pompeian Excavations.
Pompeii's city councilor for tourism, Perillo, saved its face by doing the honors of the Nobel Prize winner and his other authoritative companions.
But we could also write that Eng. Perillo played host. And here we take the opportunity once again to remind Osanna that he is the guest of the municipal territory of Pompeii. And with him the entire Archaeological Park that they assigned to him, which is just a quarter of the municipal territory. And not vice versa. Indeed, we remind him that when Queen Elizabeth of England was in Pompeii, she was welcomed by the then Mayor Machetti together with the Superintendent Zevi, a recognized giant of Roman Archaeology without fear of comparison. What we affirm is verifiable news. Another “punctum dolens” concerns what was written in the column “Pompeianeide” by the archaeologist Giuseppe Di Leva on the reopening to the public of the Baths of the Forum on the occasion of the European Heritage Days. He writes that the work carried out “…deprived visitors of one of the totem-places of the Excavations”. Reason? The many “deterrents”, even made of “scrap metal”, put in place together with barriers to make the visit route mandatory. We have not yet re-visited the Terme del Foro, but we take note of the fact that the author of the article complains about the allocation of some metal brackets in the ancient walls. He also shows the photos. Let's share, hic et nunc!
How we share your concerns about the tourist “pressure” that is changing the perception of the ancient, not only in Pompeii. It is a general problem. But in Pompeii it often finds a paroxysmal peak. It is necessary to study adequate solutions. At least the proposals should be up to the Director of the park. Instead in the Park they prefer to indulge in the communication of discoveries and re-discoveries. Di Leva, but not only him, states that “…there is a curious coincidence between finds in the excavations and fateful moments in Italian politics”. This is a singular theme unexpectedly brought out even by the most authoritative of Italian economic newspapers. In fact, Il Sole 24 Ore, usually cautious and pompous, writes in its column “Very deep condolences” signed by MM Scrofeo: “Pompeii, the new oracle of Italian Politics?”. And then again: “the superintendent Massimo Osanna… has seen a lot of politics: he took office in 2014 with Bray, he supervised with Franceschini, Renzi and M5S, he even gave minister Bonisoli the honour of announcing the postdating of the eruption of 79 AD.”
What should we add? Well, let's change the adjective: no longer Cautionary, nor Paludate, but Lapidary.
Aridàglie: the Star of the Archaeological Park of Pompeii has taken almost all the limelight of our article. We have little space to dedicate to the New City. However, we must write that yesterday in Pompeii a squalid affair ended grotesquely. The Borrelli Elderly Home was evicted by dozens of representatives of the Police Force in riot gear, supported by Fire Brigades, Ambulances and Firefighter Trucks. Let's be clear that the target was not the late Totò Riina. It was only a small troop of frightened, irreducible guests of the Borrelli Home. The municipal administration must be given credit for having fully handed over the initiative of the eviction to the Prefect of Naples who organized a quick and soft operation as those elderly people deserved in that difficult moment. We at Cronache della Campania can say that we had already said and repeated on every occasion that the cynical exploitation of the elderly of Casa Borrelli would have failed miserably. We wrote that the elderly were used as human shields to “screw” (editor’s note: we can’t find another word) the EAV project. We reiterated that the Project remains necessary, even if not optimal, for the development of Pompeii besieged by traffic and smog.
We were not listened to. What happened yesterday is a disgrace for everyone. Even for the writer. Unfortunately.
Federico LI Federico
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