According to The Guardian, the brawl took place Wednesday between a 19-year-old woman from the Netherlands and a 44-year-old Italian-American at a time in the evening when the light hits the fountain just right for photos. The two were involved in a verbal fight before the earrings were ultimately taken off.
Video footage recorded by a fellow traveler shows the two women throwing down before their respective family members try to break up the scuffle. However, as it turned out, they too wound up throwing a couple punches. In total, the fight involved eight people.
— Humans Of Late Tourism (@LateHumans) August 10, 2018
Two police officers on the scene were able to pull the bickering women apart for a time, but the truce was short-lived, and an additional two officers were called to squash the beef. All eight participants sustained minor injuries and were slapped with violence-related charges.
The incident comes after Roman city councilor Andrea Coia told local outlet La Repubblica that officials were thinking about enforcing new policies at the site to get a hold on overcrowding, according to The Telegraph.
"We're looking at the idea of having a route which would allow tourists to see the Trevi Fountain but without stopping," The Telegraph cited Coia telling La Repubblica. "The situation has become unlivable."
The Trevi fountain was designed by architect Nicola Salvi and completed by Giuseppe Pannini in 1762. The Baroque site was popularized in the 1960s by the film "La Dolce Vita" and has attracted tourists ever since, with many attempting to recreate the scene in which late Swedish actress Anita Ekberg wades into the fountain.
