Milan's Duomo? It is undoubtedly the landmark of the Italian capital of fashion and finance, the most beloved place. An icon. But also an ongoing cost for the extraordinary maintenance it has required over six centuries, that is, since 1386 when its construction began.

Not least because it is by no means an easy construction, as it consists of some 3,400 statues and sculptures that adorn its countless nooks and crannies, buttresses, pinnacles and spires, and is made of a rare pink marble extracted from a single quarry on the slopes of the Alps, the mountain range some 60 miles further north, and whose unique composition makes this building especially beautiful.

Since 1387 there has also been a dedicated association involved in the restoration and preservation of the cathedral, whose name is Veneranda Fabbrica del Duomo. Indeed, the building is attacked by pollution and weathering such as nitric acid and sulfur dioxide, which form black crusts on the marble, somewhat like tartar that is a prelude to tooth decay. And the cost of all this cleaning and maintenance has always been high, but now the cathedral has sought to increase aid from the private sector to cover some of the ongoing expenses.

And it is against this backdrop that the "Adopt a Statue" program was born, which allows companies to finance the restoration of one of the cathedral's thousands of statues to the point where, in return, you can take it home to put it on display for three years.

The entire building is wired with sensors that provide continuous digital measurements of various order de degree, as if the Duomo were being given a constant electrocardiogram. As for the Veneranda Fabbrica, it has been subsidized for years by donations and bequests from wealthy Milanese, but also from less wealthy people who have given away valuables that were later auctioned off.