Acropolis and the British “cultural” piracy

Did England commit fraud to keep the Parthenon Sculptures?

2/27/2020
For the last two centuries, the British Museum in London has claimed ownership of the Elgin Marbles without producing documentation that can establish beyond reasonable doubt that Lord Elgin, a Scottish diplomat, legally acquired the Parthenon sculptures from the Ottoman Empire in the 19th century. Historians have struggled to ascertain the facts in what some consider the world’s most infamous case of cultural theft. Meanwhile, British authorities have consistently denied assertions that the Athenian antiquities could have crossed borders without approval from the Turks, who ruled Greece during the early 19th century.
In a recently completed manuscript entitled Trophies for the Empire, David Rudenstine, a constitutional law professor at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University, challenges the British claim to patrimony by arguing against the country’s historical legal defenses. According to Rudenstine, British Parliament committed fraud in 1816 by purposely altering a key document during the translation process, making it appear as though Elgin had received prior authorization from Ottoman officials to remove the Parthenon marbles when he had not.
Read more at https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/02/did-england-commit-fraud-to-keep.html

“Greece must recognize ownership of Parthenon Marbles before loan,” says British Museum

September 3, 2019
Greece must acknowledge the British Museum ’s ownership of the Parthenon Marbles before its Trustees consider whether or not to lend them to Greece. This is what a museum representative told the London correspondent of daily Ta Nea.
“A precondition for any loan would be an acceptance of ownership of those objects by the Trustees / the Museum”, a British Museum spokesperson told Ta Nea, commenting on Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’s recent statement that he will ask Boris Johnson to approve a loan of the Parthenon Marbles to Athens in a temporary swap with other ancient artefacts.
“The Trustees will consider any loan request for any part of the collection. As yet there has been no direct contact from the Greek authorities regarding the proposal made over the weekend”, a British Museum’s spokeswoman said, stressing that “as an arms-length body, this would be a matter for the Trustees not the UK Government.”
Read more at https://www.keeptalkinggreece.com/2019/09/03/parthenon-marbles-ownership-british-museum/