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Elsewhere on the Web • Phantis/MPA: Marbles

For the first time in memory, the British Museum has not ruled out the eventual return of the Parthenon-Elgin marbles to Greece.

Possibly motivated by a Greek-backed exhibit at the European Parliament about the plight of the marble sculptures removed from the Partheon, incoming British Museum director Neil McGregor seems to be indicating that under his watch, the marbles might go home to Athens.

The Parthenon 2004 project, launched in January 2002, is intended to encourage the return of the marble images to Athens in time for the Olympics. The group has garnered support with EU members of parliament, prominent Britons, and international art lovers. Prominent actress and Minister of Culture Melina Mercouri was among the first to vigorously campaign for the return of the marbles, and the Parthenon 2004 group reflects her legacy.

The marbles have experienced a stormy history, starting with the 1801 acquisition brokered by Lord Elgin while Greece was under Ottoman control. Recently, the British Museum has been criticized for initially cleaning the marbles using techniques which stripped them of traces of their original ancient vivid colors, transforming them into pristine but inaccurate white images. The museum was also criticized for making the exhibit hall where the marbles are kept available for fundraising and other parties. These revelations removed much of the force from the British Museum's argument that they were better permanent custodians of the marbles than the Greeks.

While the Greek government acknowledges the British as the current legal owners of the marbles, and various officials on the British side insist that they will never give the marbles back, it is possible that the British Museum may lend the marbles to Greece. In this scenario, the British would exchange the temporary return of the marbles to Greece for exciting new Greek archaeological finds which would be exhibited at the currently cash-strapped British Museum.

In the meantime, the Greek government is proceeding with plans to build a museum at the Acropolis, a room of which will remain empty, pending the return - temporary or permanent - of the ancient artifacts which once adorned Athena's temple.