Persecution of pagans in the late Roman Empire

Greece will insist on the reunification of the Parthenon Marbles, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis reiterated in a videotaped statement at the opening of the exhibition "Cycladic art: The Leonard N. Stern collection on loan from the Hellenic Republic" at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

Mitsotakis did not attend the event as he has been infected by H1N1.

Culture Minister Lina Mendoni underscored that the government does not consider the exchange, loan or recognition of the British Museum's possession of the Parthenon Sculptures, in answering a question from an opposition MP in parliament on Monday. 

Britain should join a pan-European effort to return the Parthenon Sculptures back to Greece, David Frost, a former British diplomat and Brexit negotiator has said.

David Frost also told the House of Lords in London that the UK should make a grand gesture to create closer diplomatic and cultural relations between the two countries.

"These were legally acquired at the time." Of all the sound bites heard during this week's furor on the Parthenon Sculptures, that one (attributed to a spokesman for Rishi Sunak) is among the most depressing.

There are several ways to respond.

Angelos Chaniotis, professor of ancient history and classics at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey, delivered a very topical lecture at the nonprofit educational institution College Year in Athens (CYA) titled "Divided Monument, Dividing Monument: The Controversy over the Parthenon Sculptures" on Wednesday.

The resurgence of the debate surrounding the Parthenon Sculptures carries with it intricate symbolism. The intersection of the 19th and 21st centuries on matters of identity and emotional connection is perhaps the most intriguing, if not the most widely publicized.

Commenting on recent developments surrounding the Parthenon Sculptures, Stephen Fry, the acclaimed British actor and member of the Parthenon Project's Advisory Board, said the following:

A hologram of politician and museum patron Lambros Eutaxias (1905-1996) greets visitors at the Museum of the City of Athens in downtown Klafthmonos Square.

For decades, Britain and Greece were able to differ, largely politely, over the world's toughest cultural heritage dispute: What's the right place for some of the finest ancient Greek sculptures ever made, which have been displayed in London for more than 200 years but which Greece vocally wants back.

Claiming the Parthenon Marbles from the British Museum is too serious a historical undertaking to be affected by momentary political flare-ups. 

Greece should not be drawn into Britain's domestic electoral games. On the contrary, it must insist on the direction of a logical and feasible formula that will allow the reunification of the monument.