Braille Etched Railing in Italian Castle Goes Viral on Digital Media

The news of a railing installed at the top of the Castel Sant’Elmo (St Elmo Castle) in Naples, Italy, is doing the rounds of the digital media. But people in the know are not surprised. This railing etched in Braille describes the view from the top of the castle for the benefit of the visually impaired.

This railing on gazebo in Naples has braille describing the view for blind people. More of this please. pic.twitter.com/MQiKwBeT7u

— Rob N Roll (@thegallowboob) August 8, 2021

The railing was actually an art installation by Italian artist Paolo Puddu, which he named ‘Follow the Shape’. The Braille etched installation made him win the fifth edition of the ‘A Work For the Castle contest in 2015. The museum at the castle unveiled the installation in 2017.

The star-shaped 14^th century castle located on a hill-top offers an amazing view of the city of Naples and the bay.

The metal railing around the gazebo describes the view for the visually impaired. It also contains quotations from poet Giuseppe de Lorenzo’s La Terra e L’uomo (The Land and The Man) written in Italian and English, as well as that of other authors. 

Although not yet widely prevalent in India, publishing brochures in Braille or installing Braille enabled information boards is not unheard of. Madhya Pradesh Tourism has installed information plaques written in Braille in places such as Sanchi, Bhojpur, etc. 

Equipped with a tactile walkway & Braille maps, the Sanchi Stupa is accessible to the differently-abled. #MadhyaPradesh pic.twitter.com/TRl0g8SrgL

— Incredible!ndia (@incredibleindia) November 2, 2016

According to media reports, the Archaeological Survey of India has enabled a Braille brochure, Braille sign boards and a tactile pathway between the palace gate and the toilet at Tipu Sultan’s Summer Palace in Bengaluru. The ASI had also started to install signboards in Braille at ticketed monuments in and around Delhi. Signboards in Braille can also be seen in the Sirpur Lakshmana Temple in Chhattisgarh.