The damages suffered by Saint Francis basilica in the North Italian town of Assise on September 26th has led to severe polemics between Italian art and architectural experts.
Art experts Frederico Zeri and Bruno Zanardi have charged that renovation works conducted in the 1950's had been inappropriate. They said that the replacement of wooden beam by concrete elements was a major error since the roof of the basilica had became more rigid and exposed to tremor damages. They added that the previous structure had been resisting to several earthquakes in the past centuries. Cimabue's fresco representing the cruxifixion of Christ was severely damaged and is probably lost while the 28 frescoes by Giotto on the life of Saint Francis were less affected. Large cracks have also appeared in other parts of the basilica and the damages are being considered in Italy as a terrible tragedy.
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