Cherub with features of Giorigia Meloni Photo: Matteo Nardone / ipa-agency.net / PA Images / Profimedia
In the recently restored fresco of a church in Rome, a cherub appears that bears a striking resemblance to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, which led to controversy in the Italian press, writes AFP.
The fresco is in the Basilica of San Lorenzo in Lucina in central Rome, which has recently undergone restoration work, said daily La Reppublica, the first to point out the resemblance of the angelic face to Meloni's.
Next to the marble bust of Umberto II of Savoy, the last king of Italy, an angel with a scroll holding a map of Italy has features very similar to those of the head of Italy's ultra-conservative government.
The artist who restored the fresco, Bruno Valentinetti, denied in the press that he wanted to depict Giorgia Meloni, assuring that he had faithfully restored the original fresco.
The information provoked several political reactions, especially from the center-left opposition who asked the Italian Minister of Culture, Alessandro Giuli, to notify the Superintendency of Rome, which administers, maintains and enhances the archaeological, historical and artistic assets of the city, to carry out checks.
