Marbles from the Vatican’s Parthenon will return to Greece

It’s a significant move that some hope could pave the way for other remnants of the 160-metre-long (520-foot) frieze from the Parthenon Temple on the Acropolis to be returned to Athens.

The three pieces of the Vatican Museum’s collection have been there since the 19th century. Now, they are finally heading back to Athens after a transport deal was finalized, the Vatican said. The marble shards will arrive at the end of the month, with a ceremony planned to receive them on March 24, the Associated Press reported.

One of them is the head of a horse that pulled Athena’s chariot on the frieze. Another depicts the head of a young boy, believed to be taking part in a procession to commemorate the founding of Athens. The third piece is the head of a bearded man, according to the Vatican News website.

In December 2022, Pope Francis handed them over to Jerome II, head of the Greek Orthodox Church, “as a concrete sign of his sincere desire to follow the ecumenical path of truth”, according to the Vatican. another fragment of the Parthenon sculptures depicting the foot of a goddess was returned to Athens by the Antonino Salinas Regional Archaeological Museum in Palermo, Sicily.

Return the Parthenon Marbles to Athens?

Those prominent museums returning fragments to Athens send a strong signal about the reunification of all surviving pieces of the Parthenon frieze.

The main debate revolves around the British Museum, which has pieces from the frieze as the centerpiece of its collection in London.

The 2,500-year-old carvings, commonly referred to as the Parthenon Marbles or “Elgin Marbles”, have been at the heart of the British Museum’s collection since 1832.

Greek authorities have long campaigned for its return, claiming the items were acquired under murky circumstances.

The British Museum, meanwhile, says they were legally acquired and must remain in the UK. Some scholars who follow the topic have gone so far as to call the decades-old discussion the original restitution debate.

Ongoing discussions, but few prospects for action

The pieces on the frieze in London, which depict scenes from Greek mythology, make up about half of the surviving fragments of the Parthenon.

They were taken on the orders of Lord Elgin, the British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire in Constantinople, who controlled Athens until 1832. His team began removing them from the Acropolis in 1801 and later sold them to the British government, along with hundreds of other ancient objects. . items taken from Athens.

Many other fragments of marble sculpture from the frieze are currently in the Acropolis Museum of Athens, which opened its doors in 2009.

Currently, legal barriers make it difficult to return the marbles to Athens. The British Museum Act 1963 prevents the British Museum from permanently removing objects from its collections, with only a few exceptions.

In January, the UK’s new prime minister, Rishi Sunak, said there were no plans to change that law.

Meanwhile, the British Museum confirmed in January that “constructive discussions” with Greek authorities relating to a return – potentially a loan to Athens – were “under way”.

Edited by: Elizabeth Grenier