British Museum director Neil MacGregor has made the somewhat reckless move of suggesting that the Parthenon Sculptures will never return to Greece.

This point of view that he is taking, would suggest that there is no point in Greece wasting their time entering into any sort of negotiations & leaves no space for any consideration that there might ever be an organised return of artefacts, allowing the museum to move on from the issue.

From:
Daily Telegraph

Elgin marbles ‘will never be returned to Greece‘
By Chris Hastings, Media Correspondent
(Filed: 23/02/2003)

The Elgin marbles will never be returned to Greece, even on loan, the director of the British Museum has told The Telegraph.

In a ruling which will infuriate the Greek authorities, Neil MacGregor – who took over as director of the museum last August – said that the marbles could “do most good” in their current home, where they are seen in a broader historical context.

Mr MacGregor said that he wanted the Greek Government to accept instead a computer-generated version of what the 2,500-year-old marbles would look like on the Parthenon, from which they were removed between 1801 and 1804 by the 7th Earl of Elgin.

Greece first called for the return of the marbles in 1829 when it won independence from Turkey. The case was put to Harold Macmillan in 1961 and successive Greek governments have used diplomatic channels to exert pressure since then.

Mr MacGregor’s decision ends any hopes that the marbles could be loaned to the Greeks for the Athens Olympics next year and will outrage campaigners who hoped that his appointment marked a change in the museum’s attitude to ownership of the friezes.

Last year he became the first director of the museum to meet the British Committee for the Restitution of the Parthenon Marbles. This weekend, however, he announced that he was terminating “substantive discussions” with the group after one meeting.

Mr MacGregor said: “I do not believe that there is a case for returning the marbles. It is a very happy result of history that half of these surviving fragments of these sculptures are in London. They have a purpose here because this is where they can do most good. The British Museum can situate the achievements of these Greek sculptures in the context of the wider ancient world.”

Asked whether he was of the opinion that the artefacts should never return to Greece, Mr MacGregor said simply: “Yes.”

He added: “The British Museum is one of the great cultural achievements of mankind: it is very important that there is a place where all the world can store its achievements. Lots of people would not agree that there should be a special case for the Parthenon. It is an argument but not necessarily a fact. I personally don’t see any difference between Greek visual culture and the visual culture of Italy and Holland, which is also spread around the world.”

Mr MacGregor said that he hoped relations with the Greeks would be improved by his plans for a virtual reality reconstruction of the Parthenon. He has outlined the proposals in a letter to Prof Dimitris Pandermalis, the head of the Organisation for the Construction of the New Acropolis Museum, which is building a home for the marbles in anticipation of the sculptures being returned.

The reconstruction would involve taking several thousand photographs of the Parthenon as well as those objects which have been removed from the site and placed in museums around the world. The images would form the basis of a computer-generated model which would show what the ruined Parthenon would look like with all the pieces together.

Mr MacGregor said: “At the moment there is not very much middle ground between the two sides on the subject of the marbles and it is tiresome for everyone to keep saying the same things. The Parthenon can never be reconstructed, so let’s try and put together what’s left of it virtually.”

His comments infuriated members of the British Committee for the Restitution of the Parthenon Marbles, who accused him of “duplicity”. Prof Anthony Snodgrass, the chairman, said that the British Museum had been deliberately misleading about its contacts with Athens. Prof Snodgrass said: “I would only be happy with a virtual reality version if they were put in the British Museum as a replacement for the originals.”

From:
BBC News

Last Updated: Sunday, 23 February, 2003, 13:40 GMT
‘No return’ for Elgin Marbles

The director of the British Museum has said that the Elgin Marbles should never be returned from Britain to Greece.

In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph, Neil MacGregor said the sculptures, which once adorned the Parthenon temple in Athens, should remain in London.

He has also ended discussions with a British campaign group seeking their return to Greece.

The 2,500-year-old sculptures depicting religious and mythological scenes have been held at the British Museum since 1816, despite ongoing Greek efforts to have them repatriated.

Mr MacGregor, who became museum director six months ago, has issued a firm ruling certain to dismay Greek authorities.

He believes the sculptures can “do most good” in their current home, seen in what he describes as a broader historical context.

He told the Sunday Telegraph: “I do not believe there is a case for returning the marbles.

“It is a very happy result of history that half of these surviving fragments of these sculptures are in London.

“They have a purpose here because this is where they can do most good.

“The British Museum can situate the achievements of these Greek sculptures in the context of the wider world.”

‘Virtual’ Parthenon

He wants the Greek Government to accept a computer-generated version of what the sculptures would look like back on the Parthenon.

“The Parthenon can never be reconstructed so let’s try and put together what’s left of it virtually,” he said.

Late last year, Greece stepped up its campaign to have the marbles returned to their place of origin.

Work has even started on the construction of a new museum at the Acropolis in Athens to house them in time for the summer Olympic Games in the city next year.

That plan now looks unlikely.

Asked if he thought the sculptures should never be returned, Mr MacGregor said: “Yes. The British Museum is one of the great cultural achievements of mankind: it is very important that there is a place where all the world can store its achievements.

“Lots of people would agree that there should not be a special case for the Parthenon.

“I personally don’t see any difference between Greek visual culture and the visual culture of Italy and Holland, which is also spread around the world.”

Mr MacGregor’s comments and decision to end discussions have also angered the British Committee for the Restitution of the Marbles.

The group’s chairman, Professor Anthony Snodgrass, said: “I would only be happy with a virtual reality version if they were put in the British Museum as a replacement for the originals.”

Diplomatic row

The controversy over the sculptures has a long history.

They were first brought to London in the early 19th Century by British diplomat Lord Elgin.

Athens first called for their return in 1829, after Greece won independence from Turkey.

The issue has simmered ever since. In 1961, the then prime minister, Harold Macmillan, described it as complicated.

Successive Greek Governments have exerted diplomatic pressure, but all efforts to repatriate the marbles have failed.

From:
Sydney Morning Herald

You’ve lost the marbles, Greece told
February 24 2003

The Elgin marbles will never be returned to Greece, even on loan, the director of the British Museum, Neil MacGregor, has ruled.

In a decision that will infuriate the Greek authorities, Mr MacGregor said the marbles could “do most good” in their present home, where they were seen in “a broader historical context”.

Mr MacGregor said the Greek Government should instead accept a computer-generated version of what the 2500-year-old marbles would look like on the Parthenon. The marbles,
a series of ancient sculptures depicting mythological and religious scenes, were brought from the Parthenon to Britain in the early 19th century by the diplomat and art aficionado Lord Elgin.

Greek efforts to repatriate them have failed, and last year it stepped up its campaign to have them returned to their place of origin. It even started building a new museum at the Acropolis to house them in time for the Olympic Games in Athens next year.

Mr MacGregor’s decision ends any hopes that the marbles could be loaned for the Olympics and will outrage campaigners who hoped
that his appointment marked
a change in the museum’s attitude to ownership of the friezes.

Last year he became the first director of the museum to meet the British Committee for the Restitution of the Parthenon Marbles. However, at the weekend he announced he was terminating “substantive discussions” with the group after one meeting.

Mr MacGregor said: “I do not believe that there is a case for returning the marbles . .. They have a purpose here because this is where they can do most good. The British Museum can situate the achievements of these Greek sculptures in the context of the wider ancient world.”

The Telegraph, London; Agencies

From:
Reuters

Greece Should Never See Elgin Marbles – Museum Boss
Sat February 22, 2003 08:54 PM ET

LONDON (Reuters) – The Elgin Marbles should never be returned to Greece from Britain, according to the director of the British Museum.

Brushing aside one of Greece’s longest-running campaigns, Neil MacGregor told the Sunday Telegraph newspaper he was terminating “substantive discussions” over the ancient Greek sculptures.

Last autumn, Greece stepped up its campaign to have the marbles returned to their place of origin, and had even started building a new museum at the Acropolis to house them — in time for the 2004 Summer Olympic games in Athens.

“I do not believe that there is a case for returning the marbles,” said MacGregor. “They have a purpose here, because this is where they can do most good.”

“The British Museum can situate the achievements of these Greek sculptures in the context of the wider world,” he added.

The marbles, a series of ancient sculptures depicting mythological and religious scenes, were brought from the Parthenon to Britain in the early 19th century by diplomat and art aficionado Lord Elgin.

Ever since, all Greek efforts to repatriate them have failed.

Any long-term loan of the marbles to Greece would need to be sanctioned by the museum, while a permanent return would have to be decided by Britain’s parliament.

Asked whether his opinion was that the sculptures should never be returned to Greece, MacGregor said simply: “Yes.”

Last October, Greece took it’s case directly to the British prime minister for the first time, when Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis presented Tony Blair with his plans for the marbles.

MacGregor said the world needed somewhere to view all of the ancient world in context. “The British Museum is one of the great cultural achievements of mankind,” he added.