Where are the Parthenon sculptures now?
If you are attracted by a fabulous art piece when you are inside the Museum, have you ever considered the background and the history behind this piece? For the background of this article, there is a heated tension going on between Britain and Greece on the issue of the heritage of the Parthenon Sculptures.
Also, the tension raises a question: does the British Museum qualify to hold the Parthenon Sculptures or not?
Inside the article of The British Museum, Brochure talks about the history of the Parthenon Sculptures. The location of the Parthenon Sculptures, and as well as its stance to defend its rights to own the Parthenon Sculptures.
In the article, Greek Statue Travels Again, but Not to Greece, it also shows the side of Greece toward this issue, which guides us into a better understanding of this issue.
Let’s look at the article of The British Museum at first, and then the article published in the New York Times.
Focusing on the article titled The British Museum, I will analyze the article in depth to show how Brochure plans his argument step by step. The article divides into three main parts based on the author’s intention. Which are the history of the Parthenon Sculptures, the location of the Parthenon Sculptures. And its argument to defend Greece’s criticism. For the first part of the article, the author describes the history of the Parthenon Sculpture. In particular, the author shows the identity of the Parthenon Sculpture. That is a Greek temple built for the Goddess Athena around 2,500 years ago.
Then, Brochure introduces the more complex history of the Parthenon Sculpture’s damage.
For contributing to the Sculpture’s damage, there are mainly two reasons. Which are the transformation to the church and the explosion caused by the gunpowder store. The intention behind the identity of the Sculpture and the destruction of the Sculpture. Is to show this particular line:
“Arachnologists worldwide are agreed that the surviving sculptures could never be re-attached to the structure.”
Implicitly, this line reveals the author praises the contribution made by Britain for saving and maintenance of this particular Sculpture since the severity condition of the sculpture shows they are hard to survive.
However, Britain saves it by transporting it into the British Museum and preserving it in a good condition till nowadays. The author uses this line to implicitly build a positively moral image of Britain to help other artifacts that are in danger. Moreover, the article shows that the British Museum removed half of its artifacts from Greece to Britain. Under the permission of the Ottoman Empire, the country that controlled Greece at that time.
By emphasizing the permission of the Ottoman Empire, it shows Britain removing these sculptures following the rules at that time.
Which further illustrates the credibility of the British Museum. In addition, Brochure also mentions that Parthenon Sculptures exhibited in the British Museum have a profound influence on the public and its entry fee is free.
Again, Brochure raises the positive image of the British Museum by utilizing this information. In particular, the author shows the significant role of the British Museum to teach and educate the public of Greek history. Also, the:
“free entry fee”
indicates that the British Museum exhibits these Sculptures are not for its own profits and interest, but for the better public influence. Moving to the second part, the article shows the location of the Parthenon Sculptures in the world. Not only showing the British Museum and the New Acropolis Museum. But the article also mentions other museums that own part of the sculptures collection as well. By providing the information of other locations. Brochure wants to stress the fact that the British Museum is not the only one Museum that has the Parthenon Sculptures. Which defends the request of the removal of the sculptures from Greece.
Then, for the third part, the article shows the Greek government’s attitude on this issue and its own stance to defend itself.
Moreover, Greece did not agree on the legal title of the Parthenon Sculptures. And requested for the British Museum to return the part of the collection belonging to Greek culture.
However, the author did not further explain the reason behind its disagreement with Britain. Then, he shows the British Museum’s position for the Parthenon Sculptures, which are two main points. For the first point, by providing the millions of visitors each year and free entry fee for visiting the collection. The author again emphasizes the British Museum’s destiny is to help the public learning the history by stating:
“The Museum is a unique resource for the world: the breadth and the depth of its collection ….”
Thus, the Parthenon Sculptures are a critical source for the public to learn Greek history. And cannot be removed. Then, for the second point. The article indicates the idea that the sculpture should belong to the world by stating:
“The sculptures are a part of everyone’s shared heritage and transcended cultural boundaries.”
Attacking the opinion of the New Acropolis Museum, the British Museum advocates that the heritage of the Parthenon sculptures should belong to the world. Instead of being confined to a specific country.
Understanding the stance behind the Brochure’s article. We need to use the article titled Greek Statue Travels Again, but Not to Greece to explore further information. In this New York Times’ published article, we can see it provides a more detailed and objective version of this tension. In the article, author Erlanger indicates that the Greek government has been asking for the return of part of the collection of the Parthenon Sculptures for a long time.
However, the British Museum ignored the request and demand by Greece. And it still lent the sculptures to other foreign countries.
For this time, the British Museum lent the Parthenon Sculptures to Russia’s State Hermitage Museum. Which totally provoked the Greece peoples and government. For the Britain side, Neil MacGregor, the director of the British Museum, indicates that the loan is just a way of cultural diplomacy between two countries without any intention in it. In many Greek people’s eyes, this is not the first time to witness Britain’s controversial action. Tracing back to the tension between Greek and Britain, the article provides a complete and objective view of both sides.
For Greece’s main stance, primarily, Greece’s request for the returning the Parthenon Sculptures is to fulfill the gap of the losses of historical remains.
Since Greece is a country that has a rich history and having their original collection of the Parthenon sculptures stands a very important meaning to them. Moreover, Greece also does not qualify the action of Lord Elgin. Who bought the Parthenon Sculptures and sold them to the British Museum. As a justified action, because at that time Greece was under control by the Ottoman Empire. Thus, the permission of the Ottoman Empire cannot represent the permission of Greece. In addition, every time when they have a discussion between Greece and Britain. The British always have an official response that is:
“they are too delicate to be moved.”
However, this argument becomes contradicted by the British’s frequency of lending the sculptures out. Those are the main points to show Greece’s stance. And the reason why they feel enraged by Britain’s actions. In contrast, for the British side, they believe that transported from Greece by Lord Elgin is not only legal but also does Greece a favor to preserve the sculptures. They believe that Greece does not have the ability to protect its sculptures. Furthermore, the British Museum keeps indicating that the heritage of the sculptures belongs to the world. And the British Museum uses this as a resource to teach the public.
Considering the Brochure’s article and the article from the New York Times. We have a better understanding of the tension between Greece and Britain and both positions. Now, it’s time to ask whether the Brochure’s article is persuasive or not? For me, the answer is No, not persuasive at all.
Recalling the earlier quote, the article mentioned:
“Arachnologists worldwide agree that the surviving sculptures could never be re-attached to the structure.”
With intention, Brochure wants to use this line to persuade the readers that the severe condition of the sculpture is hard to repair. Which further illustrates that the British Museum did a good to protect it and save this part of the culture. However, there is a big error in this belief. Showing the severe condition of the sculptures can explain the difficulty to repair and maintain. But cannot represent that the British Museum has the ability to protect them or the only one can protect them. Perhaps, Greece also has the ability to save the sculptures themselves.
The article stresses there are millions of views of visitors who come to view the sculptures. Which implicitly build a positive image for the British Museum in helping the public learn. However, the numbers of visitors each year and the positive contribution the British Museum made to the public. Cannot answer the issue of the legal rights to obtain the sculptures.
Similarly, this is an illogical error since using the fact of millions of visitors and the contribution of the British Museum cannot directly solve the issue that was asked by the Greek government.
Then considering the Brochure’s article overall. We can also find this article contains biases, and it lacks many of Greece’s perspectives on the same issue. In particular, the second part of the article, Brochure talks about the Greek government attitude but did not provide any further reason behind its attitude. By manipulating readers, Brochure purposely put limited Greece information to create a biased result that only shows part of the point of Greece to his readers. In this way, the author can lead his audience to achieve his satisfied result that degrades the image of Greece, which further persuades the readers.
Where are the Parthenon sculptures now? Written by Wenzhe Guo
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Where are the Parthenon sculptures now?
