A court in Florence has banned the commercial use of images of Michelangelo’s David without official authorisation
A court in Florence has banned the commercial use of images of Michelangelo’s David without official authorisation.
The ruling aims to stop tour companies from overcharging tourists visiting the city’s Galleria dell’Accademia, which houses the iconic 16th century statue.
The museum took legal action against the tour company Visit Today after it used images of the statue to advertise its €45 (£40) tours of the gallery. An ordinary ticket is just €8.
The company has now been ordered to remove all images of David from its promotional material and will be fined £2,000 each day it fails to do so.
According to the ruling, which applies to Italy and the rest of Europe, images of the statue may only be used with the permission of the gallery and the payment of an agreed fee.
Reacting to the ruling, the gallery’s director Cecilie Hollberg, told La Repubblica: ‘It sets a precedent, an example.
The ruling aims to stop tour companies from overcharging tourists visiting the city’s Galleria dell’Accademia, which houses the iconic 16th century statue
‘Lots of other museums which are victims of the plague of tickets being sold at inflated prices can now take this path, because the law will prevail over what is essentially a scam for visitors.’
It is not yet clear if the ban applies to all souvenirs portraying the icon.
Other cultural organisations are now considering doing the same.
Luca Bagnoli, head of the body which runs the Duomo and Giotto’s Bell Tower, said he was satisfied with the result and is now looking at following the gallery’s example.
It is not yet clear if the ruling could apply to all trinkets portraying the icon
‘The problem of touting and selling tickets for inflated prices by people who exploit our image also afflicts the Florentine cathedral, he told the Italian news agency Ansa.
‘We would like to adopt strategies as soon as possible which allow us in some way to effectively combat this phenomenon.’
Meanwhile, the director of Florence’s Uffizi gallery told The Guardian it was also considering following suit.
‘It will be of great help in the preparation of the various legal actions that we intend to take against the many touting companies that infest us,’ Eike Schmidt told the paper.
The city’s mayor Dario Nardella added: ‘This ruling is the first concrete sign. Now it’s the job for everyone – institutions, citizens and companies – to apply [this ruling] and make sure it is respected.
‘The image of Florence should not be commercially exploited without limits and without rules.’