Venice's famous St Mark's belltower is to be protected for the ages by a metal ring encircling its foundations.
The ring of titanium bars will be set in the concrete beneath the monument and will not be visible, the Consorzio Venezia Nuova (CVN) conservation group said on Thursday. CVN head Giorgio Mainoldi said the belltower's foundations had been showing signs of age for some years.
Conservation teams have been using probes and X-rays to gauge the progression of tiny cracks that have opened up between its old foundations and new ones that were put in when the tower collapsed in 1902.
The modern foundations have proved "less resistant" than the ones built in the 12th century, Mainoldi noted. The protective action was not urgent, he stressed. "We thought we might as well do it now since we are about to start work to make St Mark's Square safe from the threat of flooding".
The St Mark's 'campanile', one of the symbols of Venice, was completed in 1156-73 on the site of an older tower dating back to around 900 AD. It collapsed in July 1902 and an exact replica was built in just ten years.
Affectionately nicknamed El Paron de Casa (The Gaffer), it commands a magnificent view over the city and its lagoon.
