 |
 |
|
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Audio Clip |
Members of the public were asked whether they thought the Elgin Marbles should be returend to Athens, Greece and why. Listen to their views. |
 |
Bringing Your Opinions to the World |
|
|
|
|
|
Katerina Anthis
27- 11- 2003
Far away from their native land the Parthenon Marbles, also known as the Elgin Marbles have been situated at the British Museum for over 150 years. The Greek government has continually asked for them to be returned to the Acropolis however the British government and trustees of the British Museum have refused to comply. In September 2003, the conflict escalated when the British museum issued its most stinging rejection, of yet more Greek pleas to have the marbles returned in time for the 2004 Olympic Games, to be hosted in the city of Athens.
The Greek sculptures in the British Museum are viewed by an estimated 6 million people a year. Yet the unrelenting stance of the British government on refusing their return has been recently criticised by some of its own greatest Olympians, including Linford Christie, Daley Thompson, Alan Wells, Jonathan Edwards and Steve Smith, all of which recognise Greece as the rightful owners of the marbles.
Apart from mounting pressure for the marbles to be returned for the Olympics, appeals have grown stronger as a new Acropolis museum is being constructed at the foot of the Parthenon monument. The museum includes a specially designed room for the marbles, where visitors will be able to view them not only in the place they originated, but also under natural light, as they were originally viewed by the ancient Greeks.
Speaking on behalf of the new Acropolis museum, Professor Dimitrios Pandermalis, the archaeologist heading the team at the new Athens Museum commented, "It would be a disgrace to even have moulded replicas of the friezes in the Greek museum, when we are situated right under the shadow from where the sculptures came - the Parthenon".
In 1801, Lord Elgin a British diplomat from Scotland, (hence the common phrasing of the Parthenon marbles, as the Elgin Marbles) obtained Turkish permission to remove the marbles from the Parthenon when he was ambassador to the Ottomon Empire, which Greece was then a part of. Over several years, Elgin amassed 33 shipments of artefacts from the monument, to adorn his planned Broom Hall. In 1816, the marbles were sold to the British government and have been housed, in the Duveen Gallery within the British Museum. To this day, both the British museum and government insist that the marbles were obtained legally. The 'Elgin' collection is composed of almost all the statutes of the pediments of the Parthenon, the largest metopes and most of the frieze slabs. In total there are 253 sculptures housed in the museum.
Despite Greece's strong historical and legal objections about the removal of the marbles from the Parthenon, the Greek government does not place them at the centre of its argument.
"The restitution of the Parthenon Marbles to their natural home is not a nationalistic claim, made by the Greek Government", says Professor Pandermalis. "It is about the restoration of the Parthenon's sculptural architecture, because the monument the friezes came from is still intact!"
The Greek government further argues that both Great Britain and Greece are members of the European Union; Greece is no longer under Turkish rule during which the marbles were taken and that the return of the marbles from London to Athens, would constitute their transfer within a single European area.
Professor Pandermalis noted that the sculptures are "Greece's greatest symbol as they represent our contribution to the cultural heritage of human kind". He further states, "The marbles were an integral part of the monument. Isn't it unfair… that only a few of the sculptures are intact on the monument and the rest of the missing pieces, are million miles away?"
The symbolic importance of the sculptures and their historical meaning to Greece is immense. In an attempt to find a compromise and consequently foster a new dynamic partnership between Greece and Britain, the Greek government suggested that a long term loan be agreed between the British and new Athens Museum. In exchange for this co-operation, the Greek government offered to assume responsibility for organising rotating exhibitions of Greek antiquities and ancient art on the grounds of the British Museum and throughout other parts of London.
Although the British Museum were unavailable for comment, the main argument for their possession of the marbles centers upon the fact they were removed from the Parthenon, by Lord Elgin with the aim of saving them from total destruction. Since atmospheric pollution has come to plague Athens, their argument further advances that the marbles are better off in London, where the cleaning and preservation of the pieces are sought too meticulously. They state that putting the sculptures back together would not create "the coherent whole, which restitutionist's claim it would." This could only be achieved by restoring the sculptures to the building, which is rendered impossible- on environmental and conservational grounds. The "best solution" and most achievable, according to the British Museum is to place plaster casts of all the surviving pieces on the Parthenon. The British Museum also feels that Professor Pandermalis's romantic sentiment that "the marbles need to be returned to the building for which they were intended" is no longer held by anyone with a proper understanding of environmental issues. Another key argument put forward, is that the sculptures from the Parthenon have been in London longer than the modern state of Greece has been in existence. As a result, they have become part of Britain's heritage and have acted as a central focus for Western European culture and civilization. They have found their home in a museum that grew out of the interest developed by the eighteenth century "Enlightenment", a culture that transcended national boundaries. Finally, the British arguments against returning the marbles are that they were legitimately, bought from the Turks on the basis of a legal document (the Sultans Firman) and that the Greeks were indifferent to the fate of their ancient treasures.
Recently, to celebrate its heritage the British Museum launched a first class stamp of Alexander the Great as part of a six stamp collection, to commemorate the museums 250th anniversary and represent its cultural diversity that spans five continents. Yet behind this backdrop, the ownership of many priceless artworks from countries other than Greece has become questionable, because of how each was acquired especially during periods of British colonialism. Some museum supporters fear that sending the sculptures back to Greece would set a disastrous precedent.
In February 2001, Alan Howarth, a former Education minister, wrote in The Guardian, "It has often been asserted by those who wish to send the Elgin marbles to modern Greece that they are special case, and we should be able to treat them in isolation without opening a floodgate of similar requests". While the British Museum may be directing UK efforts to protect artefacts being destroyed by lootings in Iraq, forceful pressure is emerging on a global level, as demands are being made by Egypt and China who want their antiquities returned to their homeland.
A significant 20th century theme, concerning the protection of cultural heritage revolves around the restitution and repatriation of cultural objects, which were taken from their country of origin, by reason of theft and illicit exportation or by reason of legal means, during periods of colonisation, conquest or war. A significant number of these objects have been returned to their country of origin, in response to popular demand, international initiatives and legal pressure. Nevertheless, the case that has incurred the greatest publicity, and which has given rise to massive debate is the fate and future of the Elgin or Parthenon marbles, as the struggle for their identity and ownership continues.
The Olympics returning to Greece marks the birth and celebration of a historical event that has united the world's populations in the field of sport. If the world can recognize and respect the significance of the games coming home, then perhaps the British Museum and Britain can contribute to this event and the spirit that guides it, by compromising and allowing the sculptures to return to their undisputed birth place for the Olympics. Other countries have had their antiquities returned and if the sculptures are absent when Greece hosts the games, a shadow will cloud the Parthenon in the midst of summer.
To quote Professor Pandermalis, "In the new Museum of Athens, there will be a room, awaiting the return of our marbles….. with only numbers on the wall, to represent the pieces that are in London".
