Lord Alf Dubs just after 3 pm, in the House of Lords, made a pertinent and heartfelt plea for the reunification of the Parthenon Marbles:
"In the British Museum there are over 108,000 Greek artefacts of which six and half thousand are currently on display but more importantly will he accept that my plea that we should consider returning the Parthenon Marbles is based on the fact that they are a unique piece of art. That they belong together and have a proud history in terms of the Greek historical traditions, surely we should think again."
Sadly also listening to the well rehearsed replies by Lord Parkinson, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Digital, Media, Culture and Sport, other lines came to mind:
'tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time'
When will solemn and honest dialogue begin to reunite this peerless collection of sculptures so senselessly divided, mainly between two great museums? Isn't it time to appreciate the efforts made by Greece to showcase these works of art as close as it is physically possible to the building they were a part of for over two and half millennia? Isn't it time to prove that as people of nations that respect and care about cultural heritage, we can do the right thing?
The Parthenon Gallery in the Acropolis Museum is the one place on earth where it is possible to have a single and aesthetic experience simultaneously of the Parthenon and its sculptures. There are no reasons remaining to prevent the UK from entering into dialogue with Greece now about the terms of and conditions under which return might be considered.
09 February 2022, Ta Nea
UK Correspondent for Ta Nea, Yannis Andritsopoulos has published his article, which can be read online at Ta Nea. He notes that yesterday's ten-minute debate in the House of Lord was held at the initiative of the Lord Dubs, who asked the government to reconsider the reunification of the Parthenon Marbles.
'In response, the British Under Secretary of State cited the Johnson-Mitsotakis meeting, in which, he said, the British Prime Minister "underlined the long-standing position of the United Kingdom that this is a matter for the Trustees of the British Museum, who are the rightful owners of the Sculptures". He then reiterated that "the government fully supports the position of the Museum's Trustees ( that the Sculptures should stay in London)", adding that Johnson "made this clear to the Greek prime minister when they met".'
We would add that UNESCO's ICPRCP recognised last September, the intergovernmental nature of the request for the Parthenon Marbles and that Prime Minister Mitsotkis stated this in his discussions with Prime Miniser Johnson in November 2022.
What was equally uplifting in yesterday's discussions was the addition of more voices in the House of Lords. These voices were suggesting that it was time for the UK to give this request the serious deliberation it deserved.
We continue to be reminded that when these sclptures were forcibly removed, Greece had no voice. Today, Greece's voice is loud and clear and the support for the reunification here in the UK, and elsewhere is equally loud and clear. There's no better time than the persent. And the case for the reunification of the Parthenon Marbles has been wrapped in immeasurable patience, time for the UK and the British Museum to show the love and respect that we all share for these sculptures.
