British Museum

The British Museum has turned down a request by Greek authorities for a process of mediation, facilitated by Unesco, on the subject of the Parthenon Marbles that are currently on display in London.

While stressing their “honest respect for the organization” but also “the already good relationships with colleagues and institutions in Greece”, the British Museum in its letter date March 26 of 2015 rejects mediation of UNESCO and indicates that “is not a government body, and the marbles do not belong to the British government.

Film director Nafsika Guerry-Karamaounas is directing a film on the Parthenon Sculptures with the aid of the Swiss Committee for the Reunification of the Parthenon Marbles. The short documentary is aimed at increasing awareness of the issue and persuading political decision makers of the importance that sculptures are returned.

Liberal Democrats MP Andrew George is urging the British governemnt to reunite the Parthenon Marbles at the British Museum with those of the Acropolis Museum. The marbles, part of the frieze of the 2,500-year-old temple were removed by Lord Elgin under controversial circumstances 200 years ago. Greece wants to see them returned as the country maintains that they were illegally taken.

Greece's Education Ministry plans to scrap an art history schoolbook which was recently criticized of misrepresenting the history of the the 5th-century B.C. Parthenon Marbles, now housed in the British Museum.

 British Museum’s loan of Parthenon sculpture to Hermitage rouses political, cultural passions

By Elis Kiss

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Turkey on Dec. 6 announced its support for Greece's fight to get back from Britain the famous Elgin Marbles - ancient Greek sculptures also known as the Parthenon Marbles which were taken from Athens in the 19th century.

Responding to the British Museum's initiative to send one of the Parthenon Marbles statues to Russia on a loan, Prime Minister Antonis Samaras said on Friday that the decision "was a provocation to the Greek people."

Part of the Elgin Marbles has left Britain for the first time since they were taken from the Parthenon in 1803, on loan to a Russian museum, the British Museum said on Friday.

The museum has loaned one of the statues -- taken from Greece by British diplomat Lord Elgin and which Athens has repeatedly demanded be returned -- to Russia's State Hermitage Museum.

An interactive campaign launched at Athens International Airport on Wednesday asks travelers to say whether they believe the Parthenon Marbles, currently on display at the British Museum in London, should be returned to Greece.