Vandals have destroyed an 18th-century fountain in the grounds of Villa Torlonia in Frascati outside Rome.

The recently-restored fountain was shattered after being pushed over during the early hours of Sunday 16 June.

Police are investigating the incident which has led to local opposition politicians making renewed calls for surveillance in the park at weekends, particularly during the summer months.

However the city's councillor for public works Francesca Neroni said it was "unthinkable to have to need 60 million police" to protect the country's heritage.

Instead she blamed a lack of civic courtesy that "begins with writing on [school] desks, moves on to walls and culminates in the destruction of an asset as valuable as this."