Tourists in the northern Italian city of Verona have once again created a hole in the right breast of a statue of William Shakespeare’s heroine Juliet. The bronze statue sits beneath the balcony in a tiny courtyard where Romeo is said to have wooed Juliet, attracting hundreds of visitors each day who flock there for a selfie and to touch the breast as part of a ritual that is believed to bring luck in love.

But the sweat from their hands is believed to have caused a small hole to develop, the local newspaper L’Arena reported. This is the second time the abundance of touches have disfigured Juliet. In 2014, the original statue, which had stood in the courtyard for more than 40 years, was replaced with a copy costing €15,000 (£12,800), which was funded by a Catholic association.