Elginism

n. 1801. An act of cultural vandalism

February 14, 2009
Arguments for & against the return of the Elgin Marbles
Posted at 6:03 pm in Elgin Marbles
A summary of the key arguments / points on both sides of the Parthenon Marbles debate.
From:
The First Post
Should Britain return the Elgin Marbles?
FIRST POSTED FEBRUARY 13, 2009
THE ARGUMENTS FOR
Cultural treasures from ancient civilisations belong in the places they come from. Museums in
Sweden, Germany, America and the Vatican have already acknowledged this and returned
items taken from the Acropolis. The British museum should follow suit and put an end to more
than two centuries of bad feeling in Greece.
Since 1975 Greece has been carefully restoring the Acropolis. Athens now undoubtedly has the
facilities to look after the sculptures properly the specially designed New Acropolis Museum
would display the marbles exactly as they appeared on the original temple.
The marbles have suffered considerable damage while in London. In the 19th century, pollution
seriously harmed the sculptures and the British Museums attempts to clean them, using
sandpaper, chisels and acid, also caused irreparable damage.
It is still doubtful whether Lord Elgin was ever truly granted permission to take the marbles. The
existing English translation of the 1801 document supposedly signed by the Sultan of the
Ottoman Empire has often been denounced as a fake. Furthermore, even if it is genuine, the
royal decree gives permission mainly to examine and view, and also to copy the figures
remaining there. So it is unlikely that the Sultan ever thought that Elgin would actually remove
entire frescos and sculptures.
THE ARGUMENTS AGAINST
If all restoration demands were met, many of the worlds greatest museums would be emptied
of their trademark exhibits. The British museum thinks it best to house the Elgin Marbles in an
international context where cultures can be compared and contrasted across time and place.
Even if the treasures were returned to Athens, many more of the original sculptures are lost
forever, meaning the set will never be complete.
The British protected the marbles from being damaged during the Greek war of independence
between 1821 and 1833 when the Parthenon was used as an Ottoman munitions store and
subsequently attacked. By and large, the marbles have been better looked after in the specialist
Duveen Gallery than they would have been in highly-polluted Athens.
The British Museums legal charter states clearly that the institution cannot legally return items
from its collection: The Trustees of The British Museum hold its collections in perpetuity by
virtue of the power vested in them by The British Museum Act (1963).
Before Elgin took the marbles he gained a royal decree from the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire
saying that he could do so. While the original document is lost, a version translated into Italian
and then into English says: when they wish to take away any pieces of stone with old
inscriptions or figures thereon, that no opposition be made thereto.
Arguments for & against the return of the Elgin Marbles, 3.5 out of 5 based on 11 ratings
Rating: 3.5/5 (11 votes cast)
Possibly related articles
How legal was Elgins Firman : August 29, 2008
Was the removal of the Elgin Marbles legal? : September 3, 2008
Pressure mounts for the return of the Elgin Marbles : June 19, 2009
Greece calls for return of disputed Parthenon Marbles from Britain : December 17, 2007
The real story of the Elgin Marbles : June 25, 2004
Making a grand gresture by returning the Elgin Marbles : July 10, 2009
Greece maintains that their demand is for permanent return of the Parthenon Marbles : January 10,
2011
Live broadcast of the Intellegence Squared Parthenon Marbles debate at the New Acropolis Museum
: June 2, 2012
Tags: Athens, British Museum, Cultural Property, Elgin Marbles, Firman, Greece, London, Restitution, The
First Post
Permalink 3 Comments Print
3 Comments
1. Mikayla L said,
12.04.12 at 3:05 pm
I feel that the Elgin Marbles should be returned to Athens. The Athenian people are very loyal to their
patron deities and the Marbles are part of their religion. If we were to take away statues of crosses, or
figures of Buddha, other religions would be upset and asked for the items to be returned. It is the same
with the Elgin Marbles. No matter what condition they are in, and how they are being cared for, they
rightfully belong to the Athenian people, and should be returned to the Parthenon.
2. Nicholas said,
ShareThis
01.28.13 at 3:08 pm
Yes without a doubt the Elgin Marbles should be returned back to the rightful owners, Greece.
3. Nick Papadakis said,
06.12.14 at 2:52 am
The dispute started when soon after the Greek revolution the first Greek governor Ioannis
Kapodistrias asked Lord Wellington to help Greece liberate more territories and Lord Wellington
refused. Greece then demanded the marbles back but the British refused and went on to call them a
British national treasure.
Since then the progress made was insignificant, even though the latter day British governments did
indeed help Greece regain some of its territories that were occupied by the Ottoman Turks and even
though Greece did help Great Britain in world war 1 and world war 2.
Greeks do of course believe that the Greek nation are the owners of those ancient marbles, because
when they were taken in 1815 Athens was occupied by the Turks.
Nowadays the issue remains alive as an archaeological vendetta and those who are happy with it are
only the extremist political parties here and there.
A simple solution exists and it is to display the marbles alternately in Athens and in London.
The marbles do of course belong to Greece, no matter which museum displays them, because they
were made in Greece, not in a lost country that does nt exist today.
But sharing is a good solution and puts an end to the useless vendetta, if only practical ways of
implementing it are found.
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