Known as the Parthenon marbles, the Parthenon sculptures, or the Elgin Marbles, a certain group of works from the ancient Greek temple dedicated to Athena are highly contested. Depicting gods and processions of ancient Greek citizens, the Parthenon was built in the 5th Century BCE and had many intricate marble artworks decorating its outside. Here’s everything you need to know about the name debate surrounding these sculptures.
Who Were the Elgin Marbles Named After?
The Parthenon still stands tall atop the Acropolis in Athens, and some of its original sculptures are housed in the adjacent Acropolis Museum. However, about half of the surviving sculptures from the Parthenon, the Elgin marbles group, are housed almost two thousand miles away in the British Museum in London. The Greek and UK governments have clashed over the sculptures, and art and history fans alike have been left wondering what the proper name for the works should be: the Elgin marbles or the Parthenon marbles.
Thomas Bruce, the 7th Earl of Elgin, also known as Lord Elgin (1766-1841), was a British nobleman, diplomat, and collector of fine art. Though he was well-known for these attributes during his lifetime, today he is best known for his association with the controversial marbles. At the beginning of the 19th Century, Lord Elgin traveled to Greece on an artistic and architectural exhibition, originally planning to produce plaster casts and drawings of the buildings and antiquities.
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Sign up to our Free Weekly NewsletterWhile Elgin’s group was in Athens, they eventually decided to procure the marbles to take back to Britain. The men ended up taking a number of sculptures and artworks from the building—a decision that was controversial even at the time. Lord Byron famously wrote a poem lamenting the removal of the artifacts, saying the walls of the Parthenon had been defaced. Elgin defended his actions and claimed the Ottoman officials in charge of Athens during the time of his expedition gave him permission for removal.
Which Marbles Are Known as the Elgin Marbles?
In all, Elgin’s group removed twenty-one pieces of the pedimental sculptures, half of the Parthenon’s frieze, and fifteen metopes. The Parthenon was not the only building on the Acropolis with sculptures removed, however. Parts of the Temple of Athena Nike, the Erechtheion, and the Propylaia were also taken.
How Did the Sculptures End Up in the British Museum?
Elgin’s collection of Acropolis marbles was purchased by the British government in 1816 for £35,000. Considering the original expedition and their removal cost him around £75,000, he did not benefit financially from the acquisition. The marbles were put on display in the British Museum in 1816 in the temporary Elgin room, designed by architect Robert Smirke. The room can be seen in a painting created by Archibald Archer.
Greece’s Collection of Marbles and Pleas for Return
Greece has housed the remaining collection of marbles in the Acropolis Museum, built in 2009, which is 306 yards from the Acropolis itself. The museum’s collection houses the remaining pedimental sculptures and metopes from the Parthenon, along with the frieze assembled in the original order. The museum replaced some parts of the lost frieze, which they consider stolen, with a white plaster cast.
Arguments For and Against Returning the Marbles
Today, the British Museum upholds Lord Elgin’s original defense, stating that “he was granted a permit (firman), and between 1801 and 1805 acting under the oversight of the relevant authorities, Elgin removed about half of the remaining sculptures from the ruins of the Parthenon.” The UK government has also argued in favor of keeping the marbles, with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak claiming the sculptures are the country’s greatest asset. Additionally, since the British Museum contains artifacts and works from a wide variety of cultures, some argue that giving back the marbles would open the floodgates for other groups asking for pieces back. The British Museum states that they will consider any loan request from the Acropolis Museum, but that they have yet to receive one.
Ever since Greek independence, the Greek government has stated that they wish for all Parthenon sculptures to be returned. In 1983, Greece made its first formal request for the return of all sculptures Lord Elgin took from the Parthenon site. UNESCO offered to mediate this dispute in 2013, which the UK government declined. After an independent investigation, UNESCO announced in 2021 that it determined Greece to be the rightful owner of the marbles and that the UK and the British Museum have a duty to return the marbles.
Some also argue that the British Museum has not been a good custodian of the marbles, pointing to faulty cleaning methods in the early twentieth century which damaged the surface of some of the pedimental sculptures. In recent years, the level of security at the museum has been called into question, while insufficient storage space has affected artifacts in the collection spanning from the Roman to the Bronze Age.
Elgin Marbles or Parthenon Marbles?
In all, the different names for this collection of sculptures reflect a long, controversial, and painful history. Considering the debate is still ongoing between the Greek and UK governments, it is prudent to refer to the sculptures in a way that respects this history. The Parthenon marbles or Parthenon sculptures is a name that reflects the origin of the artworks and gives a nod to the debate surrounding their rightful ownership. The Elgin marbles is perhaps more specific about which group of Parthenon sculptures is being referred to, but also indicates that one might believe Elgin was the rightful owner of the sculptures at a point in history. Even the British Museum today uses the term The Parthenon sculptures to refer to the collection, but the naming debate continues in the academic and art history worlds nevertheless.
