The Parthenon marbles, the sculptures and friezes taken from the Acropolis in Athens, have an impressive but somewhat cold-feeling display space in the British Museum. Greece, not surprisingly, has requested the return of the marbles. How would New York feel if someone carried off the Statue of Liberty? (Photo of Parthenon by Steve Swayne Wiki)
Greek Marbles Lost in London Fog
But, for now, the Acropolis marbles remain in the British Museum. I remember loving the whole experience of seeing them there when I was a Classics major college student. Those gray but grand rooms with the marbles displayed against the walls certainly held me spellbound.
I was studying abroad at Edinburgh University. After an academic year living with some very frugal UK students, I had enough left over in my year’s travel budget to spend much of the summer in Greece–if I slept under trees in olive orchards, in hostels, or found families with a cheap room to rent to the tourists. This was, of course, long before the internet and all the ways that has changed our travels.
Sunrise on the Acropolis
That summer I saw the Parthenon–missing the “marbles”–and then I was really spellbound. Back then a random tourist like me could go see the Acropolis at sunrise. You could sit there on the steps and soak it all in. That was memorable and inspiring. Even, years later, when I went with my children and the road leading up to the Acropolis had been arranged to cope with masses of tourists, it was still a remarkably beautiful place to step back in time.
Dueling Museums
That summer in college, I also spent a lot of time in the then museum of the Acropolis. The windows were open to the polluted air of Athens and dust gathered here and there. The British Museum claimed they were protecting the marbles in a way Greece could not. It was a clumsy argument that ignored a lot, but that old museum was somewhat basic.
Now a new museum with all the climate control any spectacular marble sculpture could want sits right there with a view of the Parthenon. Displayed in Athens, they could be savored in context. Not quite the Parthenon as it was before Lord Elgin chopped the best of the artwork off. But you might not know that story. It’s a good one. How did the Parthenon Marbles end up in the British Museum? And how did all that damage happen over time?
The History of the Parthenon Marbles
The history of the Parthenon Marbles, how they ended up stuck in London is very well told in this article: How Did the Parthenon Marbles End Up in the British Museum? I recommend the read. And everyone should see the place itself–that is an experience for the soul.
For more on the Acropolis: in 3D, reconstructing Parthenon, a virtual Acropolis.