It was a gift to the people of Barga in October of 2008 but over the past five years the red telephone box that has been standing on the bridge between old and new Barga has been under attack.
During the summer months the box has been the target of a series of interventions by vandals intent on destroying what was a pristine antique K6 cast iron telephone box.
Technicians from the comune once again this week replaced the broken glass panes in the side of the box but unfortunately nothing could be done to repair the telephone itself – the handset long gone, removed by person or persons unknown.
There was some skepticism when the box first appeared on the bridge but since then it has been accepted as a part of the local landscape and has been photographed many, many times by visitors to Barga and locals alike. To see it reduced to a vandalised box does nothing for the image of the city or society in general here.
Now it has been renovated, repainted and once again it is looking good …. but for how long ?
The iconic cast iron red painted box with its distinctive small window design, crown and telephone panel, was the idea of noted architect Sir Giles Gilbert Scott. He was commissioned to design the box in order to commemorate George V’s Silver Jubilee Year, which heralded a policy to install the so called ‘jubilee kiosks’ into every town or village with a post office. The design, which built upon various prototypes from the 1920s became known as the ‘K6’ and soon became a welcome sight at the roadside across the United Kingdom – more information about the K6 design here
From the barganews archives: October 2008
A new look to the bridge joining Barga Vecchia and Barga Giardino this morning as a bright red British telephone box was winched into place and installed in front of a curious group of onlookers unsure as to just what was going on. In fact the telephone box is a gift to Barga from retired fish and chip shop owner Mauro Cecchini – who’s family were originally from Barga but who has been living and working in Edinburgh Scotland for many years.
Mauro bought the K6 cast iron telephone box in an auction back in 1986 and installed it in his garden where he had a working telephone connected to his house so that he could make and receive calls in the comfort of his own home. When he moved to a smaller house without a garden a few years ago he was forced to leave the box behind.
A chance meeting with the Mayor of Barga, Umberto Sereni and connections with an export/import company in Scotland who moved the 750kgs box for free was enough for the idea of donating the box to the city to pass from just an idea to being a concrete reality – and so this morning the bright red box is now part of the Barga landscape. – full article here