Unveiling of Wilde's newly renovated tomb

On November 30th, Oscar Wilde's renovated tomb was unveiled by his grandson, Merlin Holland, and British actor Rupert Everett. All graffiti has been scrubbed away, and there is a new glass barrier to shield this iconic author's tomb from kisses.  Yes, kisses.

Why does Wilde need to protected from the kisses of his adoring fans?  According to the Vancouver Sun, even his grandson admitted that Wilde "would have loved the attention."

Well, it seems that the kisses are eating away at the tomb, a statue of an Assyrian-style flying angel designed by modernist sculptor Jacob Epstein.  While it remained relatively safe and unscathed for many, many years (aside from the hacking off of the angel's giant wing-wang), tourists began writing notes on the tomb in 1985.  His grandson fought to and succeeded at having the tomb declared a historic monument, hoping that the fines of thousands of euros that come from defacing it would deter vandals.

However, in 1999, one inspired person decided to plant a big, red, lipsticked kiss on the tomb.  This sparked a new tradition, with people from all over the world coming to kiss the author's tomb and wish him their love.

While this might sound romantic, the kisses were actually damaging the tomb.  Where each person kissed the tomb, the oils and grease from the lipstick sank into the stone and began to wear down the tomb.  That means that long after the kisses may have been washed away, the oils remained, slowly destroying Wilde's monument.

Therefore, after the latest expensive renovation to the tomb, which was funded by Irish Cultural Centre, a glass shield was placed around the monument in hopes of deterring would-be smoochers.

"Inevitably people will try to climb over the glass, but glass is fragile and people will perceive it as such.  Maybe one day we can take it down when the memory of kissing Oscar is gone," said Holland.

Everett, who came out as gay in the 1980s and starred in the 2002 film version of "The Importance of Being Earnest", described the dandy Irishman as his "patron saint" and "one of the last great vagabonds" of the 19th century.

Oscar Wilde

"I find him very inspiring and touching, not just for his genius, also for his stupidity, in a way. He was a human being, and made mistakes like everyone else," Everett said.

He related Wilde's trial and how he was caught out trying to explain his attitude to the lips of boys and men before being convicted of homosexuality in 1895 and sentenced to two years prison with hard labor.

"Kisses for Oscar Wilde were not just signs of love, he associated them with danger, even death," said Everett, who has written a screenplay about Wilde's final years with which he hopes to make a directorial debut next year.

"He has the perfect blend of brilliance and silliness, of pride and humility ... from the dress circle to the drains, his life was his greatest work of art and an inspiration to anyone who's ever felt outcast."