Italian divers water-blast the popular underwater statue of Christ off Portofino
ROME (AP) – Police divers cleaned one of the largest underwater attraction centers in the Mediterranean Sea to remove the crustaceans from the statue of “Abyss Christ” as a monument to those who died in the sea in 1954.
The 2,5 -meter (garden) long bronze statue, which depicts Christ with his hands that lifted the Messiah, was made using the melting medals of Italy’s falling soldiers, canons and ships. He was appreciated as a strong symbol of sacrifice in World War II. Similar sculptures are found in Key Largo, Florida and Grenada.
The sculpture is located on the coast of North Ligurian, Italy, about 18 meters depth (yard), about 300 meters (yard) from the beach between the Portofino and Camogli holiday towns.
The Italian Ministry of Culture Archeology Office says the “Abyss Christ” region is the most common dive point in the Mediterranean due to its proximity to the shore and relatively shallow depth. Located in the Gulf of San Fruttuoso, the sculpture can be seen from the surface, boats and paddleboarders attract.
Every year, police divers carefully water the statue to remove accumulated bacteria and abrasive shells. The cleaning, which took place on August 19 this year, is using sea water itself and said it did not harm the bronze or sea ecosystem because it was displaced and left to the sea.
In his interview on Thursday, he said, “There is a ton of magnificent fish coming to watch.” “This is really an activity with zero impact on the environment.”
The water blasting technique has been used since 2004, when the statue was taken from water for a complete restoration after a hand is broken and reinstalling.
At that time, the restorers noticed that the previous underwater cleaning method – scraping with bronze metal brushes to remove the crustaceans – caused irreparable damage on the surface of the sculpture and caused cracks that attract more sea materials to accumulate in the bronze Patine.
The sculpture is also sensitive, because when it was built, it was full of cement and iron rods to honor an Italian diver who died in the region by the Italian artist Guido Galletti. Cabella said that the presence of iron helps the bronze to pass inside.
