Security staff at the Vatican have apprehended a man after he jumped on to the main altar in St Peter’s Basilica and damaged some candelabra.
The incident, which took place on 7 February, was captured on video which has since been shared on social media. Footage shows an individual jumping on to the altar, removing a cloth and kicking over the six golden candle holders.
Matteo Bruni, the director of the Holy See Press Office, told the ANSA news agency: “This is an episode of a person with a serious mental disability, who has been detained by the Vatican Police and then placed at the disposal of the Italian authorities.” The press office added that the candelabra are worth £30,000.
The altar, which is considered to be one of the holiest sites in Christianity, was built above the tomb of Saint Peter, one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. Rising above the altar is the baldacchino (baldachin), a 95ft high canopy comprised of four bronze columns made by Gian Lorenzo Bernini around 1633.
Vatican News described the design: “To avoid making the structure appear overly bulky, Bernini opted for twisted columns. Moreover, their shape and decoration are linked to the so-called ‘Holy Column’, preserved today in the Treasury Museum of St. Peter’s—a twisted column believed for centuries to have witnessed Jesus's preaching in the temple of Jerusalem.”
Last year the baldachin, which was covered in dust, cracks and rust, underwent extensive restoration ahead of the 2025 Holy Year Jubilee.
In 1972, Michelangelo’s Pieta sculpture in St Peter’s Basilica was seriously damaged when Laszlo Toth, a Hungarian geologist, struck the statue with a hammer. It has since been protected by a bullet-proof glass screen.
The Vatican was contacted for comment.