The Parthenon Sculptures Should Be Returned to Greece

Building the Parthenon was a greater feat than they ever would have known. Work on the Parthenon began in 477 BC. A much smaller shrine already stood on this site, one to which we can attribute various pieces of surviving decorative material--lions and snakes, a cornice incised with flying birds, and a blue-bearded trinity that may conceivably represent Cecrops, Erechtheus, and Poseidon. If such an edifice in fact existed, it was torn down to make way for a huge limestone platform, roughly 252 by 103 feet in size, that was built as a base for the new temple. The slope of the Acropolis was such that while on the north side the foundations rested directly on bedrocks, the southeast corner needed to be built up with no

“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 is among the greatest national treasures of Greece which lasted for 2000 years but had been an important part at the British Museum in London. Lord Elgin legally went through the right process and saved the marbles from further destruction, I believe the marbles should be remained in the Britain because of various reasons. 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. Even if the marbles were returned to Athens, many other original sculptures would not completely set up in the Greece because sometimes the valuable ancient artifacts were found illegally sold to smugglers. Also, the Parthenon and its marbles are a representation

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.

It appears, the Greeks feel they have been robed from their statues at the Parthenon between the years 1801-1805. Lord Elgin, was the ambassador of the Ottoman Empire, which Athens was a part. He was granted permission from the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire to take any statues from the Parthenon. However, the Greeks feel Lord Elgin took advantage of his position by taking the statues back to the British Museum. Since the Turks had conquered Greece, it is hypotactically assumed they did not have any use or desire to keep the Parthenon intact. This led to Lord Elgin’s adventure of collecting the statues for the museum. In addition, to this, he was quite happy to have these items, because at that time it was popular to have Greek decorations or

The acquisition of the Parthenon marbles by the British museum has been a controversial topic for many years. The Parthenon marbles (commonly known as the ‘Elgin marbles’) concerns the set of stone sculptures and archaeological features which were procured by Lord Elgin and imparted to the British museum in 1816. Although the British endorse the legality of the subtraction of the marbles, many argue that the situation was ambiguous. Through the removal of these historically significant artefacts, Greece has suffered impacts upon their national pride, value and cultural symbolism. This topic is not only a matter of legal and ethical import, but also a degradation of justice.

However, I believe that the art pieces are rightfully the Greeks. The pieces were taken from the Parthenon. The only issue is that the marbles were taken legally because Elgin had the permit to do so legally. As stated in the article “There is a Michaelangelo David. There is a Da Vinci Venus. There is a Praxiteles Hermes. There is a Turner Fisherman at sea. There are no Elgin Marbles!” Therefore, I do believe that the Elgin Marbles should not be called the Elgin Marbles, but The Parthenon Marbles because they are from Greece and that is the original name. The Elgin Marbles are only named that because the “owner” changed it and the Britains know that as its name now. I believe that the marbles no matter their name should be reunited with its original resting place, in Greece, no matter if there was a permit for removal involved in 1799-1802 (Bryson,

Now that Athens have a stable museum to hold the sculptures in, they should be given back. The Athenian museum has recently opened to the

Constructed well over 2,000 years ago the Parthenon and its corresponding statues were built in dedication to the goddess Athena in the honorably named Athens. Through warfare and time itself little over half of all statues have survived to this day. Of those sculptures some reside in the Acropolis Museum in Athens and the rest are on display in the British Museum in London. While the validity of Britain’s legal attainment of these statues is debatable the lacking moral premise of such collection is undisputable. Britain simply cannot own therefore display that which is not theirs. When the Parthenon was built the structure held extreme religious value to the Athenians. The Athenians were a polytheistic society whom based

The Elgin Marbles are a collection of Greek marble sculptures made by the citizens of Athens, originally part of the Parthenon. In the early 1800s, the marbles where removed from the building and transported overseas to Britain to be on display in the British Museum, where they reside currently. In my opinion, the marbles should be returned to their site of origin. These sculptures hold great cultural significance to Greece and deserve to be on display where they were built. Today, the Parthenon is protected and preserved, thus the artifacts would be protected as well, where they belong.

Greek culture has been a fascinating topic for hundreds of years. Greek Mythology, culture, and architecture are influences on society today. One of the greatest structures the ancient Greeks built was the Parthenon. It held a titanic sculpture of Athena, and was one of the greatest sights of its day. After the munitions cash exploded pieces of the structure were laid out everywhere, a topic we discussed in class. Lord Elgin took some marbles from the sight to The English Museum were they are located today. Plain and simple Greece wants the artifacts back.

The main, non-personal, reason I believe the art works should stay in Britain is because it would take a large portion of time and require a huge financial contribution. This contribution would most likely have to be provided by the British because the Greeks would only

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