The Parthenon Marbles

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

Acropolis of Athens, and more specifically the Parthenon is the most mysterious. It is thought to be the most characteristic monument in in Greek history. Symbolizing the beginning of Western civilization, it is also an icon of European history. The Parthenon was dedicated to Athena, Goddess of the city of Athens and the goddess of wisdom. In modern culture, more than half the sculptures are now located in the British Museum in London. Christianity was established in the 6th century. With this development, the temples were changed to Christian churches. Today the return of the Parthenon sculptures to their original home of Acropolis is highly anticipated.

The Athenian Greeks at the height of their power built a temple called the Parthenon which was a monument to their core values of perfectionism, humanism, and rationalism. It is important to understand that the human eye has imperfections which deceive the mind, so one can understand the unique steps that were taken to achieve the illusion of perfection to the human eye. The Greeks loved perfection, and as seen in the Parthenon, the Greek architects purposely made the Parthenon imperfect to account for the imperfections in the human eye. This was done so that when one views the Parthenon with the naked eye, it appears to be perfectly symmetrical, straight, and proportional. The entire Parthenon does not have a single right angle. An example of the Greeks compensating for the imperfections of the human eye is seen in the base of the Parthenon, which from a picture or in real life looks perfectly straight, but in reality it is actually curved slightly upward. It is curved because the Greeks knew that if you have a perfectly flat base for a building, it appears curved to the human eye. To account for that, the Greeks made it so that the base was already curved. The Greeks also curved the columns of the Parthenon inward, because if the columns were straight, it would appear to be curving outward. Again, the Greeks knew about how the human eye deceives the mind, and decided that they must trick the eye to please the mind. This was all done because the Greeks strived for

“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 Parthenon was commissioned by Pericles sometime after Greek victories over the Persians between 490 and 480 BC” (Glancey 26, 27). During the Persian Greek wars, Athens believed that Athena watched over them and that she helped them throughout the war. The Parthenon represents the wealth, power, society, and culture of Athens. The building of the Parthenon cost the Athenians four hundred and sixty nine talents, which symbolized Athens as wealthy.

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 Parthenon Frieze is the inner most decorative piece on the outside ceiling of the Parthenon. Its construction finished in 447BC and it was built by Phidias on the orders of Pericles. (1) The Frieze today is situated in multiple museums around Europe. The majority of the Frieze is located in the British Museum where the 80m’s of Frieze has its own room in the Duveen Gallery that was built to replicate the position from where it was taken from on the Parthenon in Athens. In 1938 Duveen and his associates undertook a cleaning process on the marbles using copper tools and carborundum which damaged the marble but gave it a whiter, more authentic classical look, due to the decolouration which had happened to it. When this came to the attention of the public years later, it caused outrage as the directors had chosen to do nothing about it. (2) The second largest collection of the Frieze is in the Acropolis museum in Athens with smaller parts in museums around Europe such as Paris. (3)

Regardless of Lord Elgin's motivations, he accepted a position of ambassador with England and left to visit Greece with specific instructions to remove the French from the areas that were part of the Ottoman Empire as well as to watch for new deals and trades to assist England. Lord Elgin worked as an Ambassador for a few years and though he grew sicker while living there, as well as losing his nose to a severe skin disease, he continued in his works to acquire the sketches and molds of the sculptures in Athens and had no desire nor thought to actually take any of the original marble pieces. The craftsman and sculptures of the Parthenon was designed built between 447 and 438 BC but was destroyed when lightning struck the building where gunpowder was stored. Many of the sculptures were shattered and the roof destroyed as

One of the most well-known components of the Parthenon are the enormously beautiful and important marble sculptures that were placed in the pediment of the monument. These marbles are shrouded in controversy as to whom they belong: Greece or Britain. These marble sculptures were removed between 1801 and 1812 in order to protect them from possible destruction caused by the war between the Grecians and the Venetians, taken to Britain for refuge by the Earl of Elgin, and sold to the British Museum to be displayed. John Henry Merryman discusses his view on the issue of the ownership of marbles by presenting two main points and the validity of both sides. One aspect of his examination revolves around the legality of the removal of these sculptures.

Thomas Bruce, 7th Earl of Elgin and 11th Earl of Kincardine (b.1766), was a Scottish aristocrat and diplomat who gained notoriety in the early 19th century with the controversial acquisition of a large number of Greek artworks, primarily from the Parthenon in Athens which collectively became known as the Elgin Marbles. With permission from the occupying Ottoman Empire, Thomas Bruce removed and transported the pieces between 1801 and 1805. Originally rejected by the British government, they were purchased from Lord Elgin in 1816 and now reside in the British Museum. The Marbles have been a point of contention between Greece and the United Kingdom ever since. Outraged by what they considered a theft of one of their greatest treasures, the Greek Government has spent the last 200 years attempting to repatriate the Marbles back to Athens. The burning question has always been: Who is Lord Elgin and did he really steal the Marbles from Greece or were they obtained legally? And where is their rightful place today?

The Elgin Marbles emulate a struggle of nations to come to agreeance over cultural heritage that idolizes the context of visual sculptures. In the possession of the Britons, the Marbles reach a larger demographic with the aim of the British Museum in educating for the public benefit. Thus, if not removed from the Parthenon in the early 1800’s, further destruction to the priceless works of art would have occurred. Although the marbles hold an imperial stigma in the British possession, the creation of the Parthenon also distributed a national imperial value after the Athenian conquest of the Persian Wars that in contrast is highly related to Britain in the period of acquisition. Culture does not always belong only to the society that created

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 Parthenon is located on the Athenian Acropolis, Greece; is a former temple which was dedicated to Greek goddess Athena, whom the Athens considered their leader. According to the British Museum (2015), The Parthenon was built nearly 2500 years ago and has a long and complex history. After thousands of years it became a church of the Virgin Mary of the Athenians, then a mosque and then finally resulted in a archaeological ruin. After the result of a ruin, the buildings were reformed in which various sculptures were damaged. During the 1800’s after the Parthenon being damaged, the Elgin marbles (Elgin) a part of the remaining sculpture, was removed and given to a British museum. For hundreds of years there has been a question if the British museum should return the Elgin marbles back to the Athenians or not. I believe that that the safest and most beneficial place for the Elgin marbles is the British museum, therefore the British should not return the marble to the Athenians.

Hi Juliet. I agree with your response. Although the marbles were originated from Greek, they were the valuable parts of the Britain. Although the marbles were part of Athenians culture and society which need to be put back where they belong, the Britain had used the marbles very effectively. The sculpture was legally purchased in the supervision of the Ottoman Empire by Lord Elgin of England and was transported to Britain before the independence of Greece. Then it was presented in the British Museum, and since then it has been seen in the museum. Furthermore, the Greece told it was taken illegally but it was legally sold. The marbles were valuable in the British Museum because it was only one way for preserving and representing the ancient

What is the Elgin Marbles also called the “Parthenon Marbles”? Based on my reading and understanding, the Elgin Marbles were ancient Greek sculptures that were removed from the Parthenon at Athens and from other ancient buildings and transported to England at the direction of Thomas Bruce, 7th Lord Elgin. Elgin Marbles. (2017) retrieved from http://www.Britannica.com/topic/Elgin-Marbles Lord Elgin was known as the British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire from the time of (1799-1803). Elgin Marbles (2017) retrieved from http://www.Britannica.com/topic/Elgin-marbles The controversy comes from the British government allowing Lord Elgin the acting ambassador at the time to submit a letter to the Turkish government requesting permission to move