hold your breath

December 2, 2009, 12:00 PM
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: activist, bronze, CO2, emission, environment, gas mask, marble, pollution, protest, rome, statue, terra

Thursday morning, June 5th, 2008 –
The people of Rome woke up to the sight of 150 famous statues wearing gas masks and no-entry road signs bearing the chemical symbol for carbon dioxide.

Activists from an environment group named Terra! have coaxed the statues of Roman emperors lining Via dei Fori Imperiali, magistrates from Rome’s Palace of Justice, and Garibaldi’s generals on Janiculum Hill to join them in urging the European Commission to issue new regulations for reduction of greenhouse gas and carbon emissions from cars.

This movement also demonstrates the effects of air-borne pollutants on the city’s statues and monuments. Marble and bronze masterpieces of Roman gods, angels, and saints have been victims of erosion and discoloration.