The Italian coastal scenic spot known as the “Lovers’ Arch” for its popularity with couples collapsed during a Valentine’s Day storm, in what one local official described as a “psychological blow.”
Faraglioni di Sant’Andrea, an arch in a stone cliff on the coast of Salento, the heel of Italy’s “boot,” has been attracting romantic visitors for centuries, with lovers traditionally proposing, stealing first kisses or celebrating unions. According to local legend, those who kiss under the arch are destined for eternal love.
But as a powerful storm swept through southern Italy over the weekend, the arch’s fragile structure collapsed and turned into a pile of rubble.
Maurizio Cisternino, mayor of the town of Melendunho near the collapsed arch, told CNN that its collapse was “a devastating blow to Salento’s image and tourism.” “It’s a blow to the heart.”
The arch was formed by centuries of strong winds and high seas eroding the limestone cliffs above the turquoise waters of the Adriatic Sea in the Puglia region of Italy. The site was once a strategic lookout used to warn pirates and became a gathering place for lovers at the end of the 18th century.
In recent years, photos on Instagram have attracted thousands of couples to the arch, Cisternino said. He added that because it’s free and open to the public, it’s impossible to know exactly how many there are.
More than 40 years ago, local resident Lorenzo Barlato proposed to his wife on the top of a cliff overlooking the Arch, and the two often returned for their anniversaries.
“I can’t wait to get back,” he wrote on Facebook after Saturday’s collapse. “Unfortunately, all I have left now are the many beautiful photos I took of that slice of paradise.”
The area is so popular that hotels and resorts (many named after the arch) have sprung up to accommodate visitors.
‘The inevitable tragedy’
Rising sea temperatures due to climate change are thought to be a factor in the extreme weather hitting the arch, which was already damaged by Hurricane Harry in January.
But concerns about the landmark’s fragility are longstanding.
In 2024, the local authority applied for a $4.5 million grant to fund a conservation project to combat coastal erosion but was unable to secure the funding, Cisternino said.
“We knew this was an inevitable tragedy, we just didn’t expect it to happen so quickly,” he told local media on Sunday.
“Nature has taken back the arch as much as it created it,” he told CNN, saying resources were needed to address the situation along the coast.
“Nature has changed: it’s not what it was 30 years ago.”
The collapse came after weeks of violent storms in southern Italy. In the Sicilian town of Nisemi, a recent landslide caused houses to fall into a ravine. Widespread flooding has claimed several lives, including a man who died last week when a house collapsed near Rome.
Municipal authorities say the remnants of the arch, now gone, will be washed out to sea. “It’s like a funeral,” Puglia tourism councilor Francesco Stella said Sunday of what was once one of the happiest places in Italy.
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