Artifacts disappear from Rome sites

ROME, April 3 (UPI) -- Archaeologists in Rome say some of the city's ancient monuments have been pillaged by tourists seeking souvenirs from the ancient empire.

The archaeologists said Trajan's Forum, a site that up until recently contained many statue fragments and amphorae shards, has lost all of its artifacts to greedy tourists, The Telegraph (Britain) reported Thursday.

"Everything has been taken from Trajan's Forum," said an archaeologist who asked to remain anonymous. "The close-circuit television cameras are pointless, and the gates are practically non-existent. Even a child could climb over them."

"The treasures of ancient Rome are very vulnerable, but there are lots of gaps in the security system of one of the most important archaeological areas in the world," he said.

An Il Messaggero newspaper reporter investigating the gradual disappearance of artifacts recently visited an archaeological site and carried off several boxes of artifacts in broad daylight without being stopped or questioned, the newspaper said.

Eugenio La Rocca, the head of Rome's cultural heritage authority, said posting guards at all of the city's archaeological sites would be impractical.

"If we did the whole of Rome would be a giant bunker," he said.

However, La Rocca said the most valuable artifacts recovered from the sites are catalogued and taken to warehouses for storage.