Rome Mayor Virginia Raggi on Monday announced that Largo di Torre Argentina, the ancient site where Julius Caesar was murdered, will reopen to the public following restoration works.
A longstanding haven for stray cats, the site will be restored courtesy of fashion house Bulgari, which will spend around €800,000 on the project.
Raggi said works at the sacred site, which houses four Roman temples, should be completed “in the second half of 2021”.
The Torre Argentina cat sanctuary assured that the restoration would not leave the site’s furry residents without a home.
The repairs will focus on the ruins of temples A, B and C, not temple D, where the cat shelter is located, one of the volunteers wrote on its Facebook page.
Photo: Facebook/Gatti di Roma - Roman Cats
Meanwhile, the Uffizi Gallery in Florence on Monday announced plans to reopen the mysterious Vasari Corridor, the kilometre-long enclosed passageway which crosses Ponte Vecchio and connects the eminent gallery to the Pitti Palace.
Uffizi Gallery Director Eike Schmidt told a press conference that, after 18 months of planning, a call will soon be published for tenders to oversee a €10 million renovation project.
The renovation works are expected to take a year and a half to complete, with reopening planned for 2021.
The project will include five security exits, bathrooms, LED lighting and disabled access.
The Vasari Corridor crosses Ponte Vecchio
Built by Giorgio Vasari in 1565, the corridor was commissioned by Cosimo I de’ Medici to celebrate the wedding of his son Francesco I and Joanna of Austria.
It was closed in the early 20th century and only accessible over the last few decades to organised groups with “special” permissions, until it was completely closed in 2016 for safety reasons.
The renovation means the general public will be able to view the hundreds of prestigious paintings lining the corridor.
