The question over art history objects placement has been ongoing. In fact, one still wonders whether the Greek sculptures that shall represent the Ancient Greece shall be located in British Museum or they shall stay in the country of their origin. The noisy debate over preserving this cultural objects clearly indicates that British Museum provides a much better care of artworks due to the methodology was chosen rather than a potential sense of being unsure in Acropolis Museum. Thus, I would certainly prefer that the Pantheon marbles remain in the UK. Even though the critiques say that a new Acropolis Museum would be unlike others, and will be able to open an unknown side of Pantheon in Athens (that is why they would like to bring marbles back to the country of their origin), the truth is that Greece is currently undergoing a severe crisis. That is why there is a huge potential that the country and Acropolis Museum would be financially unable to provide the necessary case. Without a doubt, the project in Athens is well-financed and could potentially claim for having the property. However, while taking a long-lasting perspective, it is unclear how sustainable the museum would be.
On the contrary, the UK has the rights for claiming the marbles and preserving them in the British Museum. The story with the sculptures dates back to 1799 when Earl of Elgin obtained the marbles in Constantinople and managed to keep them ever since. Even though there were certain political aspects revolving around the property ownership, ultimately it ended up in the British empire. Therefore, now the UK has the right to claim that the location should be based there, given the fact that their properties were preserved in the shaky political circumstances. Thus, in this debate, I clearly support the UK as they did not destroy the Marvel and take a good care of it.
- Europe.newsweek.com. N.p., 2016. Web. 17 May 2016.
- “Elgin Statue Leaves Britain For The First Time – To Russia”. Link.brightcove.com. N.p., 2016. Web. 17 May 2016.
