Investing in culture is key says Renzi

(ANSA) - Taranto, July 29 - Investing in culture is key to moving the country forward, Premier Matteo Renzi said at the inauguration of Taranto's National Archeological Museum (MarTa) on Friday.
    "Investing in culture is not a whim but a key element in turning the country around at a time when priests are being killed," Renzi said in reference to an Islamist extremist attack earlier in the week in a parish church in France.
    "We consider MarTa a chance to give (Taranto) not only the beauty of its own history but also the beauty of its own future," the premier added as he promised more funds would be forthcoming for the museum.
    "The collection is extraordinary, one of the most significant in the world," said Culture Minister Dario Franceschini, was also on hand at the new museum which among other treasures of Antiquity, houses the so-called Tomb of the Athlete - a sarcophagus containing the remains of an ancient Greek Olympic athlete.
    The government is investing in Taranto's cultural heritage in order to relaunch the city and attract tourists, the minister said.