Statue rubbing is the act of touching a part of a public statue. Popular among tourists, it is a form of superstition that is believed to bring good luck, ensure a return to the city, improve love life or make a wish come true.
The parts that are supposed to be rubbed are usually the most protruding or characteristic ones, for example noses or feet.[1] In Springfield, Illinois, at Lincoln's Tomb, rubbing the nose of Honest Abe's large bust is good luck.[2] Some of those superstitions also involve touching breasts or genitalia of the person depicted on the statue – this is usually supposed to bring luck in love or improve fertility. One example is the statue of Juliet in Verona.[2]
Rubbing statues can have negative effects on them as it causes erosion. Because of that some well-known statues had to be replaced with a replica[2] and some places discourage or ban tourists from doing it.[3][4] It is also possible to acquire a bacterial infection from touching statues.[5]
- ^ "Statue Burnishing Etiquette". Roadside America. Archived from the original on 2 January 2017 – via Web Archive.
- ^ a b c Lakritz, Talia. "9 lucky monuments around the world that people flock to". Insider. Retrieved 2021-02-24.
- ^ "'Lewd rubbing' shuts Paris statue". BBC. 2 November 2004.
- ^ "Greyfriars Bobby's nose rubbing plea by Edinburgh officials". BBC. 31 October 2014.
- ^ Leigh Stewart (26 August 2019). "The bacteria on Europe's monuments: the results are in". Atlas Biomed.
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