The Elgin Marbles
Dull is the eye that will not weep to see
Thy walls defaced, thy mouldering shrines removed
By British hands, which it had best behoved
To guard those relics ne'er to be restored.
Curst be the hour when from their isle they roved,
And once again thy hapless bosom gored,
And snatch'd thy shrinking gods to northern climes abhorred!
Lord Byron, Childe Harold
"The request for the restitution of the Parthenon Marbles is not made by the Greek government in the name of the Greek nation or of Greek history. It is made in the name of the cultural heritage of the world and with the voice of the mutilated monument itself, that cries out for its marbles to be returned."
Evangelos Venizelos, Greek Minister of Culture
The Elgin Marbles is the popular term for the Parthenon Marbles, a large collection of marble sculptures brought to Britain between 1801 and 1805 by Thomas Bruce, 7th Earl of Elgin, the official British resident in Ottoman Athens, who had ordered them removed from the Parthenon. Since 1939 they have been housed in the purpose-built Duveen Gallery of the British Museum, London.
The Elgin Marbles include some of the statues from the pediments, the Metope panels depicting battles between the Lapiths and the Centaurs, as well as the Parthenon Frieze. As such, they represent more than half of what now remains of the surviving sculptural decoration of the Parthenon: 247 feet from the original 524 feet of frieze; 15 out of 92 metopes; 17 partial figures from the pediments, as well as other pieces of architecture. Elgin's acquisitions also included objects from other buildings on the Athenian Acropolis: the Erechtheum, reduced to ruin during the Greek War of Independence (1821-33); the Propylaea, and the Temple of Athena Nike.
Lord Elgin was neither the first, nor the last, to disperse elements of the marbles from their original location. The remainders of the surviving sculptures that are not in museums or storerooms in Athens are held in museums in various locations across Europe. The British Museum also holds additional fragments from the Parthenon sculptures acquired from collections that have no connection with Lord Elgin.
When the marbles were shipped back to Britain, there was criticism of Elgin (who had spent a fortune on the project) but also much admiration of the sculptures. There has been considerable debate over what should now be done with the marbles. Although Elgin's motives in removing them from a hazardous environment may have been of the best, many people, especially the Greek government, feel that they should be returned to Athens and displayed in a museum on the Acropolis site. No one is at present recommending that they be returned to their places on the Parthenon, exposed to the elements. However, no consensus has been reached, and the British Museum strongly defends its right to own and display the marbles.
Thy walls defaced, thy mouldering shrines removed
By British hands, which it had best behoved
To guard those relics ne'er to be restored.
Curst be the hour when from their isle they roved,
And once again thy hapless bosom gored,
And snatch'd thy shrinking gods to northern climes abhorred!
Lord Byron, Childe Harold
"The request for the restitution of the Parthenon Marbles is not made by the Greek government in the name of the Greek nation or of Greek history. It is made in the name of the cultural heritage of the world and with the voice of the mutilated monument itself, that cries out for its marbles to be returned."
Evangelos Venizelos, Greek Minister of Culture
The Elgin Marbles is the popular term for the Parthenon Marbles, a large collection of marble sculptures brought to Britain between 1801 and 1805 by Thomas Bruce, 7th Earl of Elgin, the official British resident in Ottoman Athens, who had ordered them removed from the Parthenon. Since 1939 they have been housed in the purpose-built Duveen Gallery of the British Museum, London.
The Elgin Marbles include some of the statues from the pediments, the Metope panels depicting battles between the Lapiths and the Centaurs, as well as the Parthenon Frieze. As such, they represent more than half of what now remains of the surviving sculptural decoration of the Parthenon: 247 feet from the original 524 feet of frieze; 15 out of 92 metopes; 17 partial figures from the pediments, as well as other pieces of architecture. Elgin's acquisitions also included objects from other buildings on the Athenian Acropolis: the Erechtheum, reduced to ruin during the Greek War of Independence (1821-33); the Propylaea, and the Temple of Athena Nike.
Lord Elgin was neither the first, nor the last, to disperse elements of the marbles from their original location. The remainders of the surviving sculptures that are not in museums or storerooms in Athens are held in museums in various locations across Europe. The British Museum also holds additional fragments from the Parthenon sculptures acquired from collections that have no connection with Lord Elgin.
When the marbles were shipped back to Britain, there was criticism of Elgin (who had spent a fortune on the project) but also much admiration of the sculptures. There has been considerable debate over what should now be done with the marbles. Although Elgin's motives in removing them from a hazardous environment may have been of the best, many people, especially the Greek government, feel that they should be returned to Athens and displayed in a museum on the Acropolis site. No one is at present recommending that they be returned to their places on the Parthenon, exposed to the elements. However, no consensus has been reached, and the British Museum strongly defends its right to own and display the marbles.