Selfie Takedown: Two Californians Arrested for Carving Initials Into Rome's Colosseum

"We regret it, but we did not imagine it was something so serious. We’ll remember for a lifetime."

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Rome's Colosseum amphitheater has stood since 80 A.D. Two young Californian women thought the best way to commemorate their presence was to carve their initials into a brick and pose for a selfie. They were arrested.

“We apologize for what we did," the friends 21 and 25, one "J" and one "N," told the Italian publication, La Stampa. "We regret it, but we did not imagine it was something so serious. We’ll remember for a lifetime."  Right, because being in a massive artifact of slave labor built for the Roman empire isn't enough to remember for a lifetime. The publication notes that it was their selfie—directed at the brick wall—that tipped off their group. Oops. 

As you can see from their handiwork, these Californian's aren't the only ones carving into the Colosseum.

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“It’s not an original wall but it’s nevertheless antique,” a spokesperson for the ancient artifact told The Guardian, noting that this particular wall was refurbished in the 1800s. Yep, these gals tagged some bricks that weren't present when gladiators were killing each other to the delight of spectators inside.

Six people who share the trait of not being able to just enjoy history with their eyeballs have been arrested in the past year for tagging the ancient amphitheater. There is not a report yet as to what the charge against the U.S. tourists will be, but last year a Russian man was fined 20,000 euros for a similar act and given a fourth-month probation. So it sounds like something they will indeed remember for a lifetime. YOLO.

 

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