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scubi63 wrote: Totally agree, this would have the potential to be the tip of an extremely large iceberg. And while i do not agree the way the British obtained these and many other artifacts, our museums do have a reasonable reputation for looking after such precious items. However, given the current climate in Greece I am not so sure the Marbles long term interest is so secure and therefore IMO the BM should retain them...for now at least.
The difficulty - or at least part of it - for me is how to rationalise actions made in the past in terms of current morality? Are we qualified to make such judgements and retrospectively decide past transactions were null and void, or at least circumspect when, according to the general accepted perceptions of the day, no-one had a problem.
To try and illustrate my point, I've just been reading a book about Edward I where the contemporary opinion appears to be that he was a 'Great and Terrible King'.. something which would seem to imply the two adjectives were synonymous with kingship in medieval minds. Today we might think him a complete, ruthless bastard. However is that a very narrow, intellectually misleading reading?
In my opinion an argument about any past contentious issue above all needs to be placed into historical context or else the debate is likely to be prejudiced by one or both sides. For what it's worth I think the Grecian government is using the current furore generated by Brexit to override a proper debate... as Scubi says, potentially setting a precedent for countless other disputes based upon emotion, not what is best for world heritage. Having said that, the BM position, by regurgitating the same objections, isn't going to do anything to resolve the matter either. It could be said with a lot of justification that there are more pressing humanitarian matters with Syrian refugees and Africa succumbing to famine again. However, assuming achieving international agreement regarding 'guide rules' applicable to disputes such as the Marbles is going to take ages - and then some - I would urge the relevant parties to stop haranguing/blocking and seek to find a solution.
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