Italian Prime Minister Mr Silvio Berlusconi said he was fine after a tourist threw a camera tripod at him in a packed Rome square.
Mr Berlusconi was hit behind the ear by the tripod during an impromptu walkabout in Piazza Navona shortly after sunset yesterday.
An official said he was bruised in the attack and had seen a doctor as a precautionary measure.
"Everything's fine, I'm fine," Mr Berlusconi, wearing a plaster behind his right ear, told reporters as he left his Rome residence today.
His assailant was a 28-year-old bricklayer from northern Italy who was in Rome for the New Year holiday. He was seized immediately after the incident but was released today.
"I did it because I hate him," a local news agency quoted the man as telling police.
"I certainly didn't plan this, but when I saw him there greeting the crowds, I couldn't stop myself."
Mr Berlusconi regularly goes for unannounced walkabouts in central Rome and often stops for an ice cream in a Piazza Navona cafe.