The exact proprietor of the Elgin Marbles has been disputed for many years between the British Museum and the Greek Ministry of Culture in Greece. The British Museum intends to keep the Elgin Marbles in London and on display in the Duveen galleries. The Greek Ministry of Culture is trying to acquire the Elgin Marbles, who claims Greece is the correct residence of the marbles, to be placed in the New Acropolis Museum in Athens. My stance in this dispute is for the Eglin Marbles to be returned to Greece so they can be placed in the New Acropolis Museum. My resolution to this problem is for the British Museum to give half of the Elgin Marbles to the New Acropolis Museum, which will choose the marbles they want to receive. In return the British Museum would receive a few pieces of artwork from the New Acropolis Museum.
The first issue of the Elgin Marbles is who is considered to be the proper owner of the marbles. British Museum claims they are because they purchased the marbles from Thomas Bruce, the 7th Earl of Elgin, who brought them to London after he acquired firmans from the Ottomans who ruled Greece at this time. But the firmans given to Lord Elgin from the Ottomans counter his actions in removing the marbles from the Parthenon. The firmans only gave Elgin permission to copy, draw, mold, and dig around the Parthenon not remove the marbles (UNESCO). The second firman gave Elgin permission “to dig, take away any sculpture or inscriptions which do not interfere with the works or walls of the citadel” (“History of the Marbles”). The second confirmation that Elgin did not have the right to remove the marbles from the Parthenon is a letter from Robert Adair the British Ambassador to Constantinople. Adair wrote to Elgin on July 31st,...
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..., Ian. "The 1930s Cleaning of the Parthenon Sculptures in the British Museum." British Museum. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2014. .
Theodorou, Theodore . "Robert Adair's letter to Lord Elgin." Adair to Elgin. Trans. Leonora Navari Web. 22 Mar 2014. .
UNESCO, ed. Return or restitution of cultural property to the countries of origin. Athens, Greece: 2008. Web. 22 Mar. 2014. .
Voulgarakis, Georgios. The Presentation of The First Fragment of The Parthenon Marbles That Was Returned in Greece. University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany. 05 Sept. 2006. Ministry of Culture and Sports. Web. 22 Mar. 2014. .
There is an ongoing debate on whether the Parthenon Marbles, now located in London, England, should be returned to their original homeland of Athens, Greece. The marbles were removed from the Parthenon by Lord Elgin from 1801-1812 and transported to England. They were sold to the British government in 1816 and put in the British Museum where they have been for the last 200 years. I believe that the marbles should now be returned to Greece, not only because of the method and circumstances surrounding their removal, but because they are original pieces of the oldest and most symbolic structure in Greek history that epitomizes the pinnacle of Ancient Classical Greece and the beginning of western democracy through artistic ingenuity.
In Rome the buildings were constructed under Roman Empire. The Roman Colosseum was constructed between 69 to 79 CE by the Vespasian emperor, The Circus Maximum was built in the 2nd century B.C by the high emperor, in 31 B.C the fire destroyed it that led Emperor Augustus to rebuild the Circus in 82 AD, Ludus Magnus was a gladiatorial training school in Rome and it was originally built between 81-96AD by Emperor Domitian. The emperor’s theme was large public stone buildings that would bring the people of Rome together and also the emperor was rich and they had manpower. The emperors also patron towards the workers and also to prove that they are the great leaders. The emperors had money, a lot of workers to build the buildings to the Emperor’s satisfaction. The buildings were used by the public as entertainment where they would go and watch all sorts of races & fights.
The Marble Grave Stele is a horizontal piece that was embedded in a larger piece of marble. The inscriptions of the names of who died have long been lost. Thus, we must interpret for ourselves what the full meaning of the piece is. The artist of the piece is unknown, but it was constructed in Greece in around 360 B.C. during the Classical Era and stands at 171.1 centimeters in height. Its original location, as its name suggests, was at a gravesite; currently, it is located in New York City at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Stele was carved from marble. Overall, it is in good condition; however, the body of the woman on the left is missing with only her head surviving. Its stone frame in which it was set is also missing. This frame more than lik...
The Parthenon is an amazing Greek temple that was built 2,500 years ago. Even the architects of today have numerous questions about how it was constructed and how it has held up through its eventful past. The Parthenon's detailed appearance is not its only meaningful quality. The Parthenon was constructed as a temple to the goddess, Athena, and as an icon of the Greek people themselves. The Parthenon represents the Greek ideals of humanism, idealism, and rationalism.
== == = == Sculpture of the Parthenon Viewtech
For years on end, countries have been fighting with big museums from other countries for ancient artifacts that belong to the original countries. The argument of whether or not the museums should be able to keep them still remains. It is the right of the country to have their own artifacts. It is imperative for countries to be able showcase their historical artifacts, therefor museums should return them to their rightful owners.
Morris, Ian. Classical Greece: ancient histories and modern archaeologies. Cambridge [England: Cambridge University Press, 1994. Print.
Imagine that one piece of history that is taken from a town. This piece of history tells l people how this town was built and all the important people that were apart of the community. “Returning Antiquities to Their Countries of Origin” by Joyce Mortimer can many people about how objects are getting taken from Museums. They should be returned immediately. There are so many artifacts out there that could be so important to people, and if someone can just imagine what it would feel to have one of the most important object taken from a museum and to be never returned again. Many people enjoy seeing these objects so why are they being taken?
...troversy as all countries have lost, to a great or lesser extent, treasures of national renown and significance over time. Wars, theft, treasure seeking, changing boundaries and migration have all in some way contributed to this diaspora of art. There is clear evidence that the historic placing of objects in locations remote from their origin has on occasion afforded protection and preservation, The Elgin Marbles in The British Museum being a case in point. However, given the overarching principle of self determination it is difficult to argue that serendipitous historic placement is sufficient reason for items of true national heritage to be kept indefinitely. A world-wide system of touring exhibitions and cultural exchange, with context being provided by the originating society may provide the natural progression to the accessible widening of people’s experiences.
"NATIONAL ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM OF ATHENS - OFFICIAL SITE." NATIONAL ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM OF ATHENS - OFFICIAL SITE. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Apr. 2014. .
...ity in Classical Athens. New York, NY: Alexander S. Onassis Public Benefit Foundation (USA) in Collaboration with the National Archaeological Museum, Athens, 2008. Print.
"Should Britain Return the Elgin Marbles?" The Week UK. N.p., 14 Feb. 2009. Web. 13 Feb.
GREECE & ROME. Archaeology [serial online]. November 1987;40(6):18. Available from: Academic Search Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed December 22, 2011.
In “Whose Culture Is It, Anyway? ”, Kwame Anthony Appiah begins by pointing out that some of the museums of the world, particularly in the West, have large collections of artefacts and objects which were robbed from developing and poor countries. He then raises a question: who owns these cultural patrimony and properties? Our first answer may be that since they make up the cultural heritage of a people, they belong to the people and culture from whom they were taken. Appiah has doubt about this and argues that if some cultural artefacts are potentially valuable to all human beings, they should belong to all of humanity. He thinks that when they make contribution to world culture, they should be protected by being made available to those who would benefit from experiencing them and put into trusteeship of humanity.
The Roman Colosseum, also known as the Flavian Amphitheatre, is perhaps the most famous ancient landmark in the world. The Colosseum was the host to thousands of gladiatorial shows, mock naval battles, executions, and animal hunts. Today, the Colosseum still stands in the center of Rome, Italy, however, not quite as it used to be. Still, today, the Roman Colosseum is a large tourist attraction, thousands of tourists from all over the world still come to view this marveled arena. The Roman Colosseum has a rich history, and remains a prized possession of the Roman citizens.