Bring Them Home Summary

Therefore, the Greece government demands for their Elgin Marbles or the Parthenon Sculptures to be send back to their rightful home, Greece. In the modern days the argument has arisen about weather or not they should return the Elgin Marbles to Greece? In my opinion, I think that it should remain

In December 2002, the directors of 18 museums located throughout Europe and the United States issued the Declaration of the Importance and Value of Universal Museums. The declaration is an attempt, by the directors of major Western museums, to defend against demands for restitution of museum objects by defining themselves as “universal museums” which are of value to all of humanity. This document fails as a convincing defence against restitution claims for several reasons. First, it dismisses circumstances of older acquisitions without considering the ethics or legality of surrounding the acquisition. Second, while it pronounces these museums “universal,” it approaches this from a distinctly Western perspective and perpetuates colonial and imperialist ideas. Finally, it ignores important debates that are occurring between and within scholarly, professional, and activist communities.

As I mentioned, this is an extremely controversial topic that has raised a lot of difference in opinions. Furthermore, I must admit that those arguing for the sculptures to remain in Britain do make some interesting points that plenty of people have taken into consideration. One of their arguments is that the sculptures were already in a damaged and fragile condition, and leaving them in Greece would have destroyed them completely (‘The Parthenon Marbles: Refuting the Arguments”, par 6). In the YouTube video, “Parthenon Marbles Debate ", one of Tristam Hunt’s arguments is if the Greeks are able to acquire their historic artwork, this may cause other countries to demand their historic artifacts as well, not just from the British Museum, but from museums all over the world as well. I can see the counter arguments that this controversy issue involves. However, regardless of whether they were in a horrible condition, the Greeks were never consulted, nor did they have a say regarding the selling of this artwork to Elgin. Now, when it comes to everyone claiming and demanding they receive their ancient artwork, like historian Hunt said; this is true. It can happen, but I don't believe that any other artifacts have the amount of significance that these sculptures do. The Greeks worked their hearts

Cultural artifacts should not be returned to the region of Origin. Evidence is shown in the passage, “Returning Antiquities to Their Countries of Origin” paragraph 1, “Museums acquire works to display from many different

The Elgin Marbles is the common name for an extensive collection of the Ancient Greek sculpture which has been on display in the British Museum since the early-1800s. The collection includes 75 meters (247 feet) of the original 160-metre (524-foot) frieze from the Parthenon temple in Athens. The frieze is the highly decorative section above the columns in classical Greek architecture. The collection is controversial because of its namesake the seventh Earl of Elgin removed the treasures from Greece with the permission of the Ottomans, who occupied Greece from the mid-15th century until 1821. For decades, the Greeks have called for the priceless artifacts’ return, but the British Museum defends its ownership as legitimate.

“Who Owns the Elgin Marbles?” this question continues to linger in some minds today, and just so happens to be reviewed in the respectfully titled article written by John Henry Merryman in 1986. In this article, Merryman, in the most unbiased way possible, assesses both Britain’s and Greece’s side of the argument pertaining to the ownership of the Elgin Marbles and whether they should be returned to Greece after being removed from the Parthenon by Lord Elgin in the early 19th century. Within the article, the main points discussed regard the morality and legality of the removal of the marbles. Merryman goes on to discuss three more main concerns dealing with the marbles and where they belong:

The Elgin Marbles is a culturally important piece of history for Greece. Having said this, it is important that the British museum focuses on being fair and follows the steps taken by other countries to return the items taken from Acropolis. By returning the item, the British Museum will simply be showing a form of peace and will help in attaining a positive outcome.

The controversy began almost one hundred years ago. Between 1801 and 1812, Thomas Bruce, 7th Earl of Elgin and British Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, removed several sculptures from the Parthenon in Athens and shipped them to England, where he sold them to the British Museum in 1816. 167 years later, Melina Mercouri, Greek Minister of Culture, requested that the “Elgin” Marbles be returned. This request sparked one of the greatest debates the art world has ever known. For the past two decades, people have argued over who has the rights to these Marbles. The Greek position is certainly understandable from a cultural and emotional point of view. However, from the standpoint of

The book The Long Way Home; An American Journey from Ellis Island to the Great War by David Laskin, took place in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century. Showing varies groups of immigrants from all around the world, like Southern and Eastern Europe, China, Southeast Asia and many others. Laskin explains that many of these immigrants fled from their homelands to the United States of America for many reasons, like the Civil War, religion, and lack of opportunities; as in jobs, land, money and more. All these immigrants brought to the United States varies beliefs and languages. David Laskin begins telling us stories about twelve different immigrants that came to the United States from different lands, such as Finland, Germany, Southern Italy, Jewish Settlement and many more lands.

However, artifacts should not be repatriated to the countries of their origin because museums are to educate people about different places, things, objects, cultures, and eras. If the artifact is donated then the museum’s highest priority is to honor the donor’s wishes. And if the museum found the artifact(s) in a foreign country, then it should stay with museum

First off, your post raises two great points for both sides of the Partheon Marble dispute. While I also feel the marbles should be returned to Greece, I can now see the British Museum's reluctance to return them due to the fear of other countries wanting to take their country's art back.

There is no ambiguity that the Elgin Marbles are significantly valuable to the history of Greece and a commemorative to its people and the Greek government. Unfortunately, the Greeks no longer hold possession or the legal rights to this piece of fine art. In the mid-1800s the Elgin Marbles were purchased by the British Museum. The Greek government remains to contest that the Elgin Marbles were acquired illegally and demand they be returned to Greece. According to Jenkins (2001), the contentious matter is “over cultural property and questions of its moral ownership” (p. 1). He believes that the Greek’s argument is based completely on pretentious statistics “found to be inaccurate and unreliable” (Jenkins,

The “Elgin Marbles” controversy between the British and Greek governments concerns the ownership of certain marble sculptures removed from the Parthenon. In question is whether the British Museum is legally entitle to the sculptures or if they were stolen and should be returned to Greece. The British contend that Lord Elgin legally acquired the statues from the Turks and provided appropriate documentation or Firman, justifying the legal removal and transportation. The British Parliament then purchased the marbles from Elgin in 1816. Greece however, maintains the statues were taken illegally during Turkish occupation and should be returned. In support of Greece, the authenticity of the documentation has been called in question and if bribery

The marbles of Greece's Parthenon have been situated in the British Museum for more than 150 years. The Elgin Marbles are stated to continue to be the focal points of an ongoing debate that will ultimately determine the historical influence of a particularly important culture. The Parthenon Marbles are reported to constitute "a unique case in that they form part of a unique historical monument which for humanity, and international public opinion, symbolizes civilization and democracy, but for the Greek people much more than that. For the Greek people they symbolize our history and the continuity of the Greek nation." (TED Case Studies, nd, p.1)

In present times, we have Greece, which claims that the Elgin Marbles should be repatriated; on the other hand we have Britain, which currently possesses the Elgin Marbles displayed in the British Museum. The British Museum acquired these sculptures thanks to Lord Elgin, a British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire. Lord Elgin was passionate about the ancient Greek art. Between “1801-1805 he removed about half of the remaining sculptures back to Britain” (BM web npg). This big dispute has garnered extensive media attention. Not all of the sculptures from the Parthenon are in the British Museum, even though a big portion of them are. You can also find