Security staff at the Vatican have detained a man after he jumped onto the main altar in St Peter’s Basilica, damaging several golden candelabras.

The incident, which occurred on 7th February, was captured on video and widely shared on social media.

The footage shows the individual climbing onto the altar, removing a cloth, and knocking over six ornate candle holders worth an estimated £30,000.

Matteo Bruni, director of the Holy See Press Office, described the suspect as a person with a serious mental disability.

The Vatican Police took him into custody before transferring him to the Italian authorities.

The altar, one of the holiest sites in Christianity, is built above the tomb of Saint Peter, one of Jesus’ Twelve Apostles. Above it stands the baldachin, a towering 95-foot bronze canopy designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini in the 17th century.

Vatican News highlighted Bernini’s choice of twisted columns in the baldachin’s design, which are inspired by a relic known as the “Holy Column,” believed to have been present during Jesus’ preaching in the temple of Jerusalem.

The structure recently underwent restoration in preparation for the 2025 Holy Year Jubilee.

This is not the first act of vandalism in St Peter’s Basilica.

In 1972, Michelangelo’s famous Pietà sculpture was severely damaged when a Hungarian geologist, Laszlo Toth, struck it with a hammer. The artwork has since been placed behind bulletproof glass for protection.

The Vatican has yet to issue an official statement on the latest incident.