Reuniting the surviving Parthenon Marbles in the New Acropolis Museum by the 2012 Olympics

[Matthew Taylor]

Commitment to reunite all the surviving Parthenon Marbles in the New
Acropolis Museum by the 2012 Olympics
To: The Rt Hon David Cameron MP; Prime Minister; United Kingdom, Neil
MacGregor; Director; British Museum, The Trustees of the British
Museum, Jeremy Hunt; Secretary of State for Culture; United Kingdom

The petition is really important and could use our help. Click here to
find out more and sign:
http://bit.ly/parthenon-sculptures-petition

Please forward this on to any other people who you think may be
interested.


Here is some more information about the reasons for this petition and
the timing of it:

Half of the surviving Parthenon Sculptures (also known as Elgin
Marbles) from the Acropolis in Athens, are currently in the British
Museum. They were acquired by the seventh Earl of Elgin in
circumstances of highly dubious legality. For many years, Greece’s
government has been asking for them to be returned.

Where would the sculptures be kept in Greece?
In 2009, Greece opened the New Acropolis Museum in Athens,
specifically to hold all the surviving Parthenon Sculptures in a
single place.

What would the conditions of return be?
Greece has in the past (in 2003, when Evangelos Venizelos was
Culture Minister) offered to make the following concessions in the
hope of facilitating return of the sculptures:

That the return of the Marbles could take place as a long
term, renewable loan.
That the exhibition of the reunited sculptures in the New
Acropolis Museum could take place as a joint co-operation between the
two museums.
Greece would send a series of temporary exhibits to Britain in
exchange for the return of the Marbles.

We are not saying that the sculptures have to be returned by the
Olympics - but that a commitment should be made to enter into serious
negotiations, with an aim to their eventual return.

Who has the power to return the sculptures?
We request that the British Government and the British Museum
agree to set aside debates over the issue of ownership of the
sculptures & engage in serious talks with an aim to equitable
resolution of the current situation.

Why is this important now?
In this Olympic year, when Britain has the pleasure of hosting an
event that borrows so heavily from Greek culture, now is the ideal
time to make such a gesture, to give a commitment by the start of the
Olympics on July 27th 2012, that the sculptures will be returned.
Returning the sculptures would show the UK’s willingness to help out a
friend in need – to repay our debt, from the huge cultural
contribution that we have inherited from Greece.

Now might not seem like the time to focus on something like this,
when there are so many problems in Greece, but the reality is that it
would take very little effort on Greece's part & it would be a way for
Britain (who is not contributing directly to the EU's financial
bailout of Greece) to do something to help out the country.

Please forward this to as many friends as possible, to help us
achieve our goal.

How can I find out more about the Parthenon Sculptures?
If you are interested in giving more support for the return of the
Parthenon Sculptures, there are a number of organisations that you can
contact:

The International Association for the Reunification of the
Parthenon Sculptures comprises various organisations around the world,
all of which have the aim of reunifying all the surviving Parthenon
Sculptures in the New Acropolis Museum.

Marbles Reunited is based in the UK, but anyone can become a
member, as long as they support the organisations aims, of returning
the Parthenon Marbles from the British Museum to Greece.

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You can find out more information on the Parthenon Marbles & this
petition here.

Remember to follow the link above to sign the petition and please
forward this email on to any other people who you think might be
interested.

Thanks so much,

Matthew