Athens offers London loans of archaeological treasures in exchange for the return of the Parthenon marbles

In this diplomatic conflict which has lasted for more than forty years, is Greece reaching a compromise with England to recover the Parthenon marbles kept in the British Museum? The London museum has announced that it is seeking common ground to resolve the issue of returning the fragments of the frieze in a way that benefits both countries. In exchange for their returns to their land of origin, Greece could lend part of its treasures.

Since an official request in 1983 from the Greek Minister of Culture, Melina Mercouri, Greece has demanded the restitution of the 75 meters of friezes detached from the Acropolis temple. Of the 160 meters that made up this decoration, only 155 blocks, forming a total of 60 meters, are preserved in Athens. Most of the other parts were taken away in 1802 by Lord Elgin, London's ambassador to the Ottoman Empire. The British Museum then purchased them in 1816. The rest is kept in various museums in Europe, including the Louvre where two fragments are exhibited. During a meeting in Paris in August 2019, between Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotákis and French President Emmanuel Macron, a loan of the fragment of the frieze to Greece was discussed.

For Kyriakos Mitsotákis, Greek Prime Minister, not returning this work amounts to “cutting the Mona Lisa in two”, as he explained in an interview with the BBC. Discussions heated up once again in November 2023. Rishi Sunak, British Prime Minister, took a dim view of the Greek Prime Minister using his diplomatic trip to London to once again plead for the return of the sculptures. He then accused his counterpart, Kyriakos Mitsotákis, of wanting to “entertain the gallery”. The meeting was ultimately canceled.

However, the nervousness quickly subsided, especially since the Greeks are playing on velvet: several polls in the United Kingdom have indicated that a majority of Britons are now in favor of restitution. Up to 64% of them, even, according to a Yougov study published in the summer. A sign that negotiations have resumed, Greek Culture Minister Lina Mendoni announced to the Guardian on December 27 that Greece was willing to lend important archaeological pieces in exchange for the return of the sculptures requested for 40 years. “If the sculptures were brought together in Athens, Greece is ready to organize rotating exhibitions of important antiquities that would fill the void,” she said. They would maintain and constantly renew the interest of international visitors in the Greek galleries of the British Museum. Among the pieces likely to be loaned, according to the Guardian, the very famous gold funerary mask known as Agamemnon, discovered in 1876 in Mycenae and kept at the National Museum of Archeology in Athens.

For his part, George Osborne, president of the British Museum, said he wanted to “create a real partnership”. According to the Guardian, he is the first museum president to publicly acknowledge the controversial nature of the presence of these antiquities at the British Museum. Although Greece does not intend to take legal action, but rather to use "the possibilities offered by dialogue and cultural diplomacy", it has set one condition for any negotiations: that they take place on the basis of a complete return of the marbles to Athens.