Marking the 13th anniversary of the Acropolis Museum & research showing average visitor time spent in BM's Room 18

To mark the 13th anniversary of the creation of the Acropolis Museum in Athens, Greeks and classists across the UK are gathering at the British Museum on the 18th of June at 14:00 pm to call for the reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures.

To coincide with the demonstration, the British Committee for the Reunification of the Parthenon Marbles, has released new research, undermining claims by the British Museum that the Sculptures must remain in Bloomsbury in order to reach the widest possible audience.

The British Museum points to its 6 million annual visitors in contrast to the 1.5 million visitors to the Acropolis Museum. However classists and campaigners believe the Sculptures should be reunified with the other half of those remaining in Athens because that is where they belong and where the quality of visits is much higher.

The research carried out by the Committee found that:

• Of those visiting the British Museum only 36% visited the Sculptures on randomly selected days throughout the start of this year
• Of those visiting the Parthenon Sculptures held at the British Museum only 26% even picked up additional information in order to learn more about them, around 9% of the total who visit the Museum
• Of those visiting the Parthenon Sculptures held at the British Museum average “dwell time”, the amount of time spent engaging with the exhibit as a whole was on average 8 minutes and 32 seconds for the entire exhibit of 21 metopes, 15 statues and over 75 meters of frieze - equating to less than 4.6 seconds per item in the collection

In contrast every single one of the visitors to the Acropolis Museum is there to, and does, visit the Parthenon Sculptures, engaging with them in their native context for an average of one and a half hours. The top floor, glass walled Parthenon Gallery housing these Marbles, is in direct sight of the Parthenon itself, making the visits that much more meaningful.

“We’re gathering at the British Museum to mark the 13th anniversary of the opening of the Acropolis Museum. Serious conversation about the reunification of the greatest work of classic antiquity has been lacking for over 200 years, but the last vestige of an excuse for not returning the Sculptures evaporated 13 years ago.”

“These Sculptures, torn from the Parthenon itself without permission, sit in a sad wing of the British Museum in Bloomsbury - rather than reunited with the vast majority of the remaining Sculptures in their native context back in Athens.

That only 36% of those visiting the Museum even see the Sculptures, and that they spend so little time among them with even fewer engaging with the scant educational context provided by the British Museum, is yet another blow to any argument made against their return.” Janet Suzman, Chair and Paul Cartledge, Vice-Chair of BCRPM.

Notes to editors:

1. BCRPM has been campaigning for the reunification of the Parthenon Marbles for 39 years and after the Acropolis Museum was opened on 20 June 2009, founder and Hon Secretary, the late Eleni Cubitt was hopeful that this would encourage the BM to consider a magnanimous gesture.
2. In June 2009 Chair of the BCRPM, Professor Snodgrass, Vice-Chair Christopher Price and Secretary Eleni Cubitt attended the official inauguration with members Christopher Stockdale and Marlen Godwin.
3. Protest at the BM have spanned 13 years and there have been many memorable moments, the last was 20 June 2021, when the current Chair Janet Suzman joined a small group of protestors outside he BM to hand out a leaflet entitled ‘Tell The Story’ and refuting the reasons that the BM continue to make for keeping the Parthenon Marbles divided.
4. On 20 June 2020, silent protestors gathered outside the BM officially closed with banners
5. On 20 June 20 June 2019, Hellena sang her song 10 times in Room 18, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-EkNkxl3-A
6. Several protests were made in conjunction with BP or not BP?, starting from 2018 when Danny Chivers spoke in Room 18 for the first time about the plight of the Marbles. This was followed by Cypriot student Petros Papadopoulos of REUNITE and Marlen Godwin, BCRPM.
7. On 15 January 2015, jazz singer Sarah Fenwick and guitarist Marinos Neofytou perform their song 'Never Again' from the duet's latest CD 'Jazz Origins', this is dedicated to the campaign for the reunification the Parthenon Marbles. The song can be heard on YouTube
8. On 22 November 2009, American student, Mary Phillips, made her one-woman silent protest and Neil MacGregor, director of the British Museum, stopped by briefly to have a look at Mary and declared it 'an elegant gesture'. At the end of the day, English student and Plinthian, Sofka Smales joined Mary for a photograph.
9. Student Sofka Smales stood on the 4^th Plinth in Trafalgar Square on 12 September 2009 and two days later delivered a roll of wallpaper with Eleni Cubitt, to the then Director of the British Museum, Neil MacGregor, stating her wish to see the Parthenon Marbles reunited in the newly opened Acropolis Museum.
10. Forty five students from Argostoli, Kefalonia flew into London to dance, sing and recite poetry in the courtyard of the British Museum in the afternoon of 03 May 2009.