A poignant picture shows two Italian newlyweds sharing their first kiss as a married couple through surgical face masks.

Diego Fernandes , 46 and Deni Salgado, 30, tied the knot in a modest ceremony in Naples over the weekend in a country ravaged by the coronavirus crisis.

The couple, who were photographed at the altar, were undeterred from celebrating their special day.

But they sadly had to do so with just their witnesses present, as public gatherings have been banned as part of Italy’s mass lockdown which aims to slow the spread of the disease.

Instead of being cheered on by well-wishers and showered with confetti, they were seen stepping out afterwards onto an almost deserted street, watched by a lone dog walker.

It comes as the country’s health ministry resorted to even stricter measures yesterday to limit people’s movements as it attempts to contain Europe’s worst Covid-19 outbreak.

The flu-like virus claimed the lives of another 627 people in Italy on Friday, taking the total number of deaths to 4,032 – the largest daily rise since the virus was first detected a month ago.

Credit: The Mirror