AFP
Sun, 26 November 2023
The Parthenon Marbles have been on display at the British Museum since 1817 -- but Greece is determined to secure their return (Daniel LEAL)
Greece's prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Sunday he would push for the return of the Parthenon Marbles when he meets UK leader Rishi Sunak in Britain this week.
The sculptures, also known as the Elgin Marbles, were taken from the Parthenon temple at the Acropolis in Athens in the early 19th century by British diplomat Thomas Bruce, the earl of Elgin.
Greece maintains the marbles were stolen, which Britain denies, and the issue has been a source of contention between the countries for decades.
Mitsotakis, who is due to see Sunak on Monday, likened the collection being held at the British Museum in London to the Mona Lisa painting being cut in half.
"They do look better in the Acropolis Museum, a state-of-the-art museum that was built for that purpose," he told the BBC.
"It's as if I told you that you would cut the Mona Lisa in half, and you will have half of it at the Louvre and half of it at the British Museum, do you think your viewers would appreciate the beauty of the painting in such a way?"
Mitsotakis added that "this is exactly what happened with the Parthenon sculptures".
"That is why we keep lobbying for a deal that would essentially be a partnership between Greece and the British Museum but would allow us to return the sculptures to Greece and have people appreciate them in their original setting," he told the Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme.
The 2,500-year-old collection has been on display at the British Museum since 1817.
In January, the UK government ruled out a permanent return after media reported the British Museum was close to signing a loan agreement that would see the marbles back in Athens.
Mitsotakis, who won a second term in June, said his government "had not made as much progress as I would like in the negotiations".
But added: "I'm a patient man and we've waited for hundreds of years, and I will persist in these discussions."
Mitsotakis said he would also raise the issue with UK opposition leader Keir Starmer, who -- if opinion polls are believed -- is set to be Britain's next prime minister after an election expected next year.
The Parthenon temple -- built in the 5th century BCE to honour the goddess Athena -- was partially destroyed during a Venetian bombardment in 1687, then looted.
Its fragments are scattered throughout many renowned museums.
Earlier this year, three marble fragments of the Parthenon temple that had been held by the Vatican for centuries were returned to Greece.
pdh/rox
Keeping Elgin Marbles in UK akin to ‘cutting Mona Lisa in half’ – Greek leader
Ted Hennessey, PA
Sun, 26 November 2023
The Greek prime minister has compared the British Museum’s possession of the Elgin Marbles to the Mona Lisa painting being cut in half.
Athens has long demanded the return of the Parthenon Sculptures, which were removed from Greece by Lord Elgin in the early 19th century, when he was the British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire.
Kyriakos Mitsotakis has said he will raise the issue during meetings with Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer in London this week.
Asked where the Parthenon Sculptures should be, Mr Mitsotakis told BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme: “I think the answer is very clear.
“They do look better in the Acropolis Museum, a state-of-the-art museum that was built for that purpose.”
Prime Minister of Greece Kyriakos Mitsotakis (Jordan Pettitt/PA)
He went on: “This is not in my mind an ownership question, this is a reunification argument, where can you best appreciate what is essentially one monument?
“I mean, it’s as if I told you that you would cut the Mona Lisa in half, and you will have half of it at the Louvre and half of it at the British Museum, do you think your viewers would appreciate the beauty of the painting in such a way?
“Well, this is exactly what happened with the Parthenon sculptures and that is why we keep lobbying for a deal that would essentially be a partnership between Greece and the British Museum but would allow us to return the sculptures to Greece and have people appreciate them in their original setting.”
Sections of the Parthenon Marbles in London’s British Museum (Matthew Fearn/PA)
British Museum chairman George Osborne, the former chancellor, has previously said he is exploring ways for the Elgin Marbles to be displayed in Greece.
There has been speculation this could involve some form of loan arrangement.
Sir Keir, who represents the Holborn & St Pancras constituency, home to the British Museum, will tell Mr Mitsotakis that Labour will not change the law regarding the marbles, The Financial Times reported.
One person close to Sir Keir told the paper: “We’re sticking with the existing law, but if a loan deal that is mutually acceptable to the British Museum and the Greek government can be agreed, we won’t stand in the way.”
The 1963 British Museum Act prevents the institution giving away objects from its collection except in very limited circumstances.
The Prime Minister, speaking in March, said that there were “no plans” to change a law over the sculptures.
Sir Keir Starmer (Jane Barlow/PA)
Mr Mitsotakis said: “We have not made as much progress as I would like in the negotiations, but again, I’m a patient man and we’ve waited for hundreds of years and I will persist in these discussions.”
Asked if it can be done within his time as prime minister, he added: “I would hope so, yes, I was just elected.”
A British Museum spokesperson said: “Discussions with Greece about a Parthenon Partnership are on-going and constructive.
“We believe that this kind of long term partnership would strike the right balance between sharing our greatest objects with audiences around the world, and maintaining the integrity of the incredible collection we hold at the museum.”
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