I. Identification

1. The Issue

The British Museum, located in London, England, purchased the Parthenon Marbles, also known as the Elgin Marbles, from Lord Elgin on July 11, 1816 through an Act of Parliament (1). The Parthenon marbles consist of 115 panels of frieze and 92 mesotopes of which the British Museum owns 56 panels of the frieze and 15 mesotopes. The museum also owns 17 pedimental figures, and thus houses about half of surviving sculptures of the Parthenon while the other half is in Athens (2). The legal circumstances surrounding Lord Elgin’s removal of the marbles is questionable as he never obtained permission from Greece, but rather the temporary occupational government at the time- the Ottoman Empire (3). Therefore, the Greek government would like the British Museum to return the marbles so they can be placed in the new Acropolis Museum near the Parthenon, a vital part of Greek heritage. The British Museum does not want to comply as the marbles have now become a key component of their collection, and they believe themselves to be rightful and legal owner of the marbles. Furthermore, the marbles’ removal would cause the questioning of museums worldwide, and their ownership of foreign antiquities.

2. Description

The Parthenon was built after the Athenian government voted to use its surplus revenue to rebuild the temple of the warrior goddess Athena on highest point in the city, the Acropolis. It took fifteen years to build, from 447 B.C. to 432 B.C. Athens was at the height of its political power and having an artistic and intellectual renaissance, thus it is understandable that a structure like the Parthenon would have been created as a testament to the accomplishments of the Greeks. Not much is known about the arrangements for the construction, but the principle architect was a man named Iktinos, who had also designed the temple of Apollo at Bassae in Arcadia (4).

            The temple has a row of Doric columns on each side and a double row of porches at each end. It was made out of white Pentelic marble from Attica. There were sculptures in the triangular pediments at either end, with the statues representing the birth of Athena and her conquest of Poseidon for Attica. The 92 metopes (32 on each side and 14 at each end) are in high relief and show scenes from Greek mythology, while a 160 meter frieze in low relief show a procession to the temple at a Panathenaic festival (5). This monument was the culmination of Greek sculpture, and far surpasses the quality and quantity in decoration of any other building in the classical age.

            The Parthenon, while preserved by the arid climate of Athens, has had a series of damaging occupations. Beginning in the fifth century AD, the Parthenon was closed and turned into a Christian church by order of the government in Constantinople. It later passed into the hands of the French (1204AD) and the Ottoman Turks (1458AD). When the Venetians tried to overtake Athens from the Turks in 1687, a mortar bomb penetrated the roof of the Parthenon and hit the Turk’s storage of gunpowder inside (6). Extensive damage was done to the temple.

            In 1799 Thomas Bruce, the seventh Earl of Elgin, was appointed British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire. It is unclear as to his intentions regarding the Parthenon when he first went to Athens. Since the Sultan was looking for Britain to protect the Ottoman Empire against the French, Elgin was able to obtain a “firman” or authorization to make casts and drawings, excavate around the building, and remove some pieces of the Parthenon (7). It is because of this vague document that Elgin removed 50 slabs, two half slabs of the frieze and 15 metopes, and sent them back to England, causing extensive damage in his removal and shipping.

             Lord Elgin first displayed the marbles in his London home, but after falling into debt and needing money, Elgin decided to try and sell his marbles to the British government (8). After a long debate in Parliament over whether or not Lord Elgin had acted lawfully in taking the marbles, and many arguments over price, was the final decision reached. The House of Commons passed an Act of Parliament on July 11, 1816 that said the marbles would be sold to the British Museum for 35,000 pounds, would remain together in the museum, and be entitled “The Elgin Marbles”(9). The debate over the legality of Lord Elgin’s actions continues today.

Arguments against the return of the marbles:

-Lord Elgin’s “firmen” from the Turkish government was a legal document that allowed for the removal of the marbles.

-The marbles are safer in London than Athens.

-The British Museum has protected the marbles through the ages.

-Returning the marbles would set a precedent that other great museums’ collections would need to be repatriated.

-The Greeks today are not the same Greeks as those in ancient times and therefore have no title to the marbles.

-The marbles have now become part of Britain’s heritage.

-The marbles are a critical part of the British Museum’s collection which draws 6 million visitors per year.

Arguments for the return of the marbles:

-Lord Elgin misinterpreted the terms of the “firmen” from the Turkish government through which he acquired the marbles.

-Lord Elgin exploited his position as ambassador and took advantage of an uncertain political situation.

-The marbles are a crucial part of Greek heritage and history.

-The Parthenon restoration program is underway, as is the Acropolis museum to properly house the marbles; therefore it is the perfect time for their return.

-The shipping of the marbles to England, as well as the polluted air in London, and the British Museum’s cleaning of the marbles has caused far more damage than what would have occurred if they had remained in Athens.

-The Greek government is only asking for the return of the marbles, none of the other antiquities housed in museums around the world, thus no other museum collections would be affected. Museums which currently own pieces of other Parthenon marbles include:  the Musee du Louvre, Paris, Copenhagen National Museum, Wurzburg Univeristy, Museo Salinas, Palermo, the Vatican Musuems, Heidelburg University, Kunsthistoriches Museum, Vienna, and Glyptothek Museum, Munich (10).

3. Related Cases

Elgin Marbles Case

 

4. Author and Date:

Sarah Anderegg, April 16^th, 2004,

Master of Tourism Administration Program, Department of Tourism and Hospitality Management, School of Business, The George Washington University, 600 21^st Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20052

sandereg@gwu.edu

II. Policy Impacts

5. Social

Having the Parthenon Marbles back in their place of origin would have a positive impact on the ethos of the Greek people, and allow them to reconnect with their cultural heritage in their homeland. People from other parts of the world could also have a more authentic cultural experience by seeing the marbles in the surroundings they were created for.    

6. Environmental

This policy would not impact the natural environment, but the rather the architectural and cultural environment of Athens. 

7. Economic

Tourism to UK, specifically to the London area of Bloomsbury where the British Museum is located, could be affected if such a prominent piece of the collection was moved. However, this hopefully would be minimal as the British Museum has many other significant cultural items in their collection and the Parthenon Marbles would be replaced by another piece of Greek antiquity.

Tourism to Greece, and more specifically Athens, would most likely increase if the marbles were to be placed on loan there. Hopefully the tourism related businesses in the area would notice an increase in revenue from the additional tourists. 

8. Legal

Museums around the world could see that it is possible for a long standing conflict over repatriation to come to an end and benefit both parties involved. 

9. Suggested Interventions

See section number 13

 

III. Legal Clusters

10. Discourse and Status/Policy Issue:

UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization), the European Union, as well as many prominent people such as His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales and former US president Bill Clinton have endorsed the return of the marbles as they view the British Museum’s ownership as unlawful (11). Such debates have been taking place ever since the Parthenon Marbles arrived in Britain. The British Museum believes that they are the rightful owners as they obtained the marbles through the laws of the time period in which they were acquired (12). As of November 2002, the Greek Minister of Culture, Evangelos Venizelos, visited Britain proposing that the marbles be returned to Athens and placed in a British Museum annex (13). Venizelos confirmed in the London Sunday Times on August 17, 2003 that the Greek Government does not recognize the British Museum to be the owner of the Parthenon Marbles (14). Due to this denial, the Director of the British Museum Neil MacGregor, as well as the trustees, feel they are unable to discuss even loaning the marbles back to Greece. However, the trustees of the museum have also never received a defined loan request from the Greek Government for the Parthenon Marbles (15). In an article reported by British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) UK Edition, on January 22, 2004, the UK’s Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, and Greek Foreign Minister George Papandreou, have decided to hold talks about the marbles. The Greek Government is now apparently ready to accept the offer of a loan (16).

11. Forum and Scope/Existing Policy Framework:

The Hague Convention (1954), the UNESCO Convention (1970), and the UNIDROIT (The International Institute for the Unification of Private Law) Convention (1995) (17) all resulted in policies to aid in protecting antiquities. However, the UNESCO and UNIDROIT Conventions only cover the return of stolen or illegally exported cultural property, while the Hague Convention is concerned with the protection of cultural property during wartime. A policy needs to be created to solve repatriation disputes over antiquities acquired before the conventions, as all of them only obtain to acquisitions made after their inception. This policy would have a great impact on antiquity source nations and the museums that house their cultural property. Tourism to these museums would be affected as the museum’s collections change, and therefore the businesses that support the tourists surrounding the museums would be affected. The traditional role of museums would be called into question.

12. Decision Breadth/Stakeholders/Policy Actors:

The issue surrounding the Parthenon Marbles affects many stakeholder groups including: the British Museum, the city of London, the United Kingdom, the new Acropolis Museum, Athens, Greece, museums around the world, as well as tourists. The groups who could be involved with any policy action include the British Houses of Parliament, the British Museum, UNESCO, the International Council of Museums, the Greek Hellenic Ministry of Culture, and the Greek Government.

13. Legal Standing/Legal Regulatory Framework/Suggested Policy Intervention: Treaty

The British Museum is the current owner of the Elgin Marbles as stated in an Act of Parliament passed by the House of Commons in June of 1816 (18). Another piece of legislation, the British Museum Act of 1963 (19), prohibits objects in the collection being disposed of unless there are duplicates, which in the case of the Parthenon Marbles, there are none. A compromise needs to be reached between the British Museum and the Hellenic Ministry of Culture, since the situation has been raised to such a heightened level of awareness in the international community. It is unreasonable to for the British Museum to think that the demands of the people and organizations who want the marbles to be returned is going come to an end or gradually fade away.

The British Museum does consider loan requests for items in its collection, while taking into account the loans affect on people visiting the museum, academics, and the safety of the item during the loan. The museum does not make permanent loans, but does make loan renewals; (20) however, Greece cannot expect the British Museum to loan the Parthenon Marbles, or create an annex of the museum in Athens, if they do not admit the British Museum to be the legal owner. It is regrettable that the marbles were ever taken from Greece, but such an event did occur and no progress will be made by remaining in denial. Whether or not Lord Elgin legally acquired the marbles, the Parthenon Marbles have been housed by the British Museum since 1816 and such a lengthy time period is going to bestow, at least quasi, ownership upo n the institution.

Another request should be made by the Hellenic Ministry of Culture asking for the loan of the marbles, the creation of an annex of the British Museum within or next to the new Acropolis museum, while agreeing that ownership of the Parthenon Marbles will always belong to that of the British Museum. The British Museum should agree to the loan as an act of goodwill, with the power to oversee the creation of the annex and marble display, and with an agreement that all costs incurred for the move and creation of the annex will be covered by the Hellenic Ministry of Culture. It should also be agreed that as a loan, the Parthenon Marbles can be returned to the UK at the end of any loan term. Another item of Greek antiquity, of the British Museum’s choosing, would be displayed at the museum in London while the Parthenon Marbles were on loan. Furthermore, the British Museum could have the option of charging admission at the Parthenon Marbles Athenian museum annex.

IV. Trade Clusters      

14. Type of Measure: Intellectual Property

The Parthenon Marbles are returned on a loan to the new Acropolis Museum in Athens, Greece.

15. Relation of Trade Measure to Environmental/Tourism Impact

a. Directly Related to Product: A reduction in tourists to the British Museum. Conversely, there would be an increase in tourist visits to the Acropolis Museum at the Acropolis. 

b. Indirectly Related to Product: The surrounding businesses which support the tourists at the locations, London and Athens, particularly around the British Museum and the Acropolis could notice a change in their revenue. The absence of the Parthenon Marbles from the British Museum’s collection could hurt attendance levels, resulting in less business to the surrounding cafes and restaurants, gift shops, stores, hotels, and businesses offering traveler services. Similar businesses surrounding the Acropolis could notice an increase in revenue from tourists with the return of the marbles. On a larger scale, tourist arrivals for the two destinations London, England, and Athens, Greece, could also notice a change in numbers if the marbles move locations. 

c. Not Related to Product: If the a new policy was implemented between the British Museum and the Acropolis museum, other museums with long-standing repatriation disputes might be inclined to look for their own solutions.

d. Related to Process: If an agreement was met in which a comparable or substitute antiquity was to be exchanged for the Elgin Marbles, the Greek Government would cover the cost of the shipping and handling of the item(s) to England as well as the cultural cost of losing different antiquity of value. The British Museum would have to alter its museum space to accommodate this new antiquity. 

16. Trade Product Identification/Trade and Services:

The trade product would be the tourists visiting the Parthenon Marbles in either location, London or Athens. All the services tourists require while visiting a destination such as hotels, restaurants, transportation in the forms of metros, taxies, trains, and airplanes; as well as supporting stores like money exchanges, gift stores, food stores, and sundry shops could potentially be affected by any relocation of the marbles. 

17. Economic Data

The British Museum attracts 4.6 million visitors a year, with the Parthenon Marbles attracting 55-60% of their total visitors (21). The United Kingdom drew 24.2 million overseas visitors in 2002 spending a total of 11.7 billion pounds (22). Greece had 12.8 million visitors in 1999, an amount that is expected grow 15% more by the 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Athens (23). Having the Parthenon Marbles returned, a group of internationally known antiquities, Greece’s exposure in the tourism marketplace would be heightened and most likely generate an increase in international arrivals. The UK on the other hand, wants to remain a top tourist destination and not lose any number of their lucrative tourist arrivals by dispersing their famed museum collections. 

18. Impact of Trade Restriction: Revenue would be lost in the UK tourism industry, but gained in Greek tourism industry by the return of the Parthenon Marbles. However, there is always the possibility that the marbles would not be missed from the British Museum, nor would the Greek tourism industry gain any visitors.

19. Industry Sector: Travel and Tourism

20. Exporters and Importers: United Kingdom and Greece

V. Macro/Environment Clusters/Tourism Policy Clusters

21. Environmental Problem Type/ Environmental Aspects:

            The natural environment in Athens is not harmed by the absence of the Parthenon Marbles, but the architectural environment is. The Acropolis is a focal point for the city of Athens, and the fact that some of its key components are missing is detrimental for the overall architectural environment. Even if the marbles were never restored to the Parthenon, but rather displayed in the museum on the Acropolis, the location and the artifacts could resonate their meaning and history to visitors in a more powerful way than the marbles ca n currently in the British Museum.

22. Resource Impact and Effect:

 The issue surrounding the Parthenon Marbles has no impact on the environment. However, the removal of the marbles by Lord Elgin is one of many cases throughout history of an art buying nation removing antiquities and artifacts without the full approval of the source nation. The cultural resources of antiquities from source nations are depleted over time as their antiquities are stolen, legally or illegally exported out of the country.   

23. Urgency and Lifetime/Urgency and Policy Review:

There is not extreme urgency in reviewing the policy surrounding the ownership of the Parthenon Marbles as they are not in any harm by residing in the British Museum. They are protected from pollution and the elements. The people of Greece feel urgency over the desire to have them returned because it has been over 200 years since the marbles were taken out of the country, but the marbles are safe at the British Museum.

24. Substitutes/Alternative Policies:

Reproductions of the marbles do exist in Greece, but such substitutions will not suffice for the Greek people. They demand that the actual Parthenon Marbles be returned, whether they would accept a policy that would not return ownership to the Greek government is yet to be determined.

            Legislation could be brought forth in the Houses of Parliament to return the Parthenon Marbles to Greece and change the Act which was passed in 1816 granting ownership to the British Museum, but such an event is doubtful in the near future.

VI. Conclusion

25. Policy Implications

A policy between the British Museum and the new Acropolis Museum that allows the Parthenon Marbles to be returned to Greece on a loan would have implications for many different stakeholders, including tourists and the tourism industry in London and Athens. This policy could also serve as an example to other museums around the world dealing with long standing repatriation issues.

26. Recommendations

The Parthenon Marbles debate can first be resolved with Greece acknowledging the British Museum’s ownership and working on an agreement from that basis. In this situation, compromises need to occur for both parties involved. With this policy, the British Museum will loan the Parthenon Marbles to the new Acropolis Museum, but the British Museum will keep their title as owner and not be burdened financially. Greece will need to come to terms with the fact that they are no longer the owners of the marbles, but with the loan they will be able to enjoy the Parthenon Marbles within their country’s borders.

 

VII Other Factors

27. Culture:

The Parthenon is a symbol of Greek heritage and has been dominating the Athenian cityscape for two and a half millennia. Only a few other buildings in the world, such as the pyramid of Cheops in Egypt, have been around for a longer period of time. The Parthenon has come to symbolize the democratic ideals founded by the ancient Greeks, and is therefore a structure that is not only close to the heritage of a nation, but that of all democratic societies throughout the world. Therefore, many people, not only the Greeks, feel cultural ties to the Parthenon Marbles.

28. Trans-Boundary Issues: Yes, the ethical issues surrounding the removal of cultural treasures from their national boundaries are gaining international attention. The desire and need to return these cultural artifacts is becoming an increasingly popular belief not only among the stakeholders in the origin countries, but among supporters in the countries housing the foreign artifacts as well.

29. Rights:

The rights of the Greek people have been violated if indeed if the sale of the Parthenon Marbles between the Ottoman official and Lord Elgin was illegal. Regardless, the Greek people have been denied a critical part of their cultural heritage for over two hundred years.

Museum rights come into question when the issue of repatriation arises. Even though the Greek government says it will not ask for any other antiquities or artifacts if the Parthenon Marbles are returned, the idea that a museum’s collection can be divided could ruin the basic idea of museums- institutions that display and care for, in many cases, foreign objects of cultural value.

Tourists have a right to see the Parthenon Marbles, which are not only part of Greek culture, but that of humankind. Currently, the marbles are accessible to many visitors of the British Museum which is a scholarly and safe environment for the marbles to be housed. Whether tourists should also have the right to see antiquities such as the Parthenon Marbles in the environment from where they originated has yet to be determined. 

30. Relevant Literature

 Barkan, Elazar and Ronald Bus, ed. Claiming the Stones, Naming the Bones. Los Angeles: Getty Research Institute, 2002.

Greenfield, Jeanette. The Return of Cultural Treasures. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1989.

Hitchens, Christopher, Imperial Spoils, London: Chatto and Windus Ltd., 1987.

---. The Elgin Marbles. London: Chatto& Windus Ltd., 1987.

Hughes, Jordana, “The Trend toward Liberal Enforcement of Repatriation Claims in Cultural Property Disputes.” The George Washington Journal of International Law and Economics 33 (2000): 131-154.

Slijivic, Ana, “Why Do You Think It’s Yours?” The George Washington Journal of International Law and Economics 31 (1997/1998): 393-439.

Vrettos, Theodore. A Shadow of Magnitude. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1974.

---. The Elgin Affair. New York: Arcade Publishing, 1997.

Relevant Websites

British Museum- www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk

The British Committee for the Restitution of the Parthenon Marbles- www.parthenonuk.com

Hellenic Ministry of Tourism- www.culture.gr

Greece Now Project- www.greece.gr

British Tourism Authority- www.visitbritain.org

References

1. Greenfield, Jeanette.  The Return of Cultural Treasures. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1989,71.

2. Hitchens, Christopher. The Elgin Marbles. London:Chatto&Windus Ltd., 1987, 37.

3. Browning, Robert, “The Parthenon in History,” The Elgin Marbles, Christopher Hitchens, 24.

4. Browning, Hitchens 16.

5. Browning, Hitchens 17.

6. Greenfield 51.

7. Browning, Hitchens 24.

8. Greenfield 62.

9. Greenfield 71.

10. The British Museum, “The Parthenon Sculptures: Facts and Figures.” March 5, 2004. <www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk/gr/debate.html>.

11. The British Committee for the Restitution of the Parthenon Marbles, “Supporters.” March 5, 2004. <www.parthenonuk.com/supporters.php>.

12. The British Museum

13. The British Museum

14. The British Museum

15. The British Museum

16. BBC News, “Talks Planned Over Elgin Marbles.” January 22, 2004. </news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/3419815.stm>.

17. Hatti, Vivek, K. “India’s Right to Reclaim Cultural and Art Treasures from Britain under International.” The George Washington Journal of International Law and Economics. Washington 32 (200): 465-496.

18. Greenfield 71.

19. The British Museum

20. The British Museum

21. The British Museum, “The Surviving Parthenon Marbles: the Facts in Brief.” March 5, 2004. <www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk/newsroom/current2003/parsculpt.htm>.

22. Visit Britain, “Key Tourism Facts.” March 5, 2004. <www.visitbritain.org/ukindustry/>.

23. The Greece Now Project, “Upgrading Greece’s Tourism Industry.” March 5, 2004 <www.greece.gr/BUSINESS/TourismAndServices/UpgradingTouristIndustry.stm>.

1/2001;4/2004