Why The Parthenon Marbles Should Stay At Their Museum?

In 1812, a controversy began over where the ancient remains of the Parthenon marble figures should be located. Although these famous statues originated in Greece, for the past two centuries, these historical pieces of artwork were not located in their homeland. Currently, they are being preserved and stored within the British Museum where they are displayed for many tourists and travelers from all around the world to see. Greece has requested to have them returned, which has in turn created an international conflict between England and Greece. Just like any conflict, there are two sides to every story, but it is within those stories that a clear answer emerges. It is simple in answer, however it is turning out to be much more difficult solution …show more content…
They detail their reasoning in addition to the common misconceptions that gave rise to the museum keeping the marbles in the first place. Some of these misconceptions include the allegations of Lord Eglin stealing the marbles, that the sculptures should return to the Parthenon, and the argument that the British don’t think that Greece can keep the statues in adequate care. They address these main arguments along with a few other points to support their stance on keeping the Parthenon marbles in Britain. The reasoning they have for arguing that the marbles were not stolen was that Lord Elgin “acted with full knowledge and permission of the legal authorities of the day in both Athens and London.” In addition to that, the British Museum argues that the case was “thoroughly studied by a Parliamentary Select Committee.” In addition to that, the Museum’s response to the argument that the marbles should be returned to the Parthenon was retorted by the fact that the Parthenon is in too much ruins to have the sculptures be reunited with it. Finally, the allegation that the British think Greece cannot take adequate care of their own sculptures was denied by the museum as well. Their reasoning for keeping the sculptures was that they “convey huge public benefit as part of the Museum’s worldwide collection.” Although there are several other allegations …show more content…
When comparing the two arguments about whether or not Lord Elgin stole the marbles, the British side has some pitfalls. While Lord Elgin may have asked for permission, the firman only permitted him to take some of the marbles, not the majority of them. Additionally, the British Museum stated that they had a “Parliamentary Select Committee” determine whether it was legal or not. This committee is based in the UK which calls into question the legitimacy and depth of their investigation. There could be a significant bias that resulted in clearing the British Museum from the responsibility of admitting to stolen property. The British argument that the marbles cannot return to the Parthenon because of its “ruined state” does not hold up to the fact that the action of taking the sculptures contributed to that ruin in the first place. In addition to that, the argument that the marbles are better suited to the British Museum because of their contribution to the “public worldwide benefit” does not hold up to the fact that their heritage and proper place is within Athens where they could still contribute to the public worldwide benefit. Possibly in even greater capacity because they would be located in their