Dear friends – I start with this because I consider you all as friends here – let me speak in English so that we can all understand each other, which is slightly against protocol, but I will do this in honour of our dear friends who are joining us today in this great event.
When it comes to the Parthenon Sculptures, which are now at the British Museum, I think there are two distinct dimensions. There is a legal dimension and there is a political dimension. I would love to discuss about the legal dimension because I think that would be a very privileged area for me. Yet, I'm not going to speak about the legal aspects of it. I will speak in my capacity as a Foreign Minister, and I have been engaged in this project for quite a long time, both from an academic point of view as well as from a political point of view. What I would like to state is simple, that the reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures is a unique case. It's an unprecedented case. It doesn't resemble to other cases of returning of artefacts because we have to consider that there is an artistic hole in Parthenon that we need to address.
This is the key issue. It's a matter of reunification. It's not a matter of return. We are speaking about artefacts which are essentially “unsplitable”. This is the major idea. It is not about whether there is a constitutional right for any person to enjoy the art of ancient history or culture. What I'm claiming here is that the reunification is today a claim of ecumenical nature, and I think we should all place emphasis upon this fact.
Why today? I think in the last few years, there have been some very strong arguments in favour of the reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures. First and above all, I would say that there is almost a high majority when it comes to popular opinion supporting this reunification, even within the United Kingdom. I take this very seriously. I think it's of utmost importance that today we're speaking about a popular demand to reunify the Sculptures. And obviously, this is reasonable to happen here in Greece or in other parts of the world. But when it happens within the United Kingdom, I think it indicates that this is not only a popular demand, but clearly an ecumenical demand.
Secondly, we have a series of resolutions coming from UNESCO, the international organisation, which is, par excellence, the forum where issues of cultural heritage are discussed. I think this is also a very significant aspect.
Thirdly, it's important that we have started, under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture, a series of returns of artefacts from other cosmopolitan-type museums, such as the Vatican Museum or the Antonio Salinas Museum of Palermo. This reflects, exactly, a broader idea that items of cultural heritage need to be in their birthplace.
And last, but not least, I think the most important argument comes from the very idea of having the Acropolis Museum, a piece of modern art, which is indisputably among the most important museums worldwide. And I think the mere existence of the Acropolis Museum here in Athens calls for the reunification.
The truth is that for the last few years, we have been in constructive talks with the British Museum. This is an important aspect of our dialogue because above all, I think it's important to have a mutual understanding about things, and it is important to understand each other's position. We have these constructive talks with openness and sincerity. I think it is important to be open and to recognise each other's “red lines”. We are doing this together with the Minister of Culture. We have landed on some specific premises upon which we can build in order to come up with a strategic partnership. This is the broader idea of what we're discussing today, a partnership that would eventually result in the Sculptures coming back to their birthplace.
I think it is important that we have a new government in the United Kingdom, in order to discuss further about the logistics of the possible reunification. As you probably understand, it's not a matter of the government, of the British government, to just land on an agreement concerning the reunification of the Sculptures. But it is essential that there is a political endorsement of any such agreement, and we are going to discuss about those issues.
I think there is a relative optimism when it comes to a possible partnership that would also encompass other aspects apart from the reunification of the Sculptures, which could be some joint ventures or foundations, concerning the preservation of artefacts of antiquity, exchanges of artefacts in temporary exhibitions, and other joint projects concerning the awareness of the ancient Greek civilization.
Cultural assets do not have to carry monetary value as long as they awaken a memory or enlighten history, Geoffrey Robertson writes in his emblematic book, Who Owns History. And this is what I would like to reiterate. The Parthenon Sculptures are essentially ecumenical, but they belong here. And it is absolutely different to have those Sculptures here as opposed to even a cosmopolitan museum. And I realise that it has been, for decades, useful to have the Sculptures in the British Museum, where an individual or a group of people could just visit the Sculptures and come across the evidence of ancient Greek Antiquity. But today, with the Acropolis Museum of Athens, I think this is where those artefacts belong and should come back. Visiting the Parthenon Sculptures in the British Museum is a viewing, whereas visiting those Sculptures in the Acropolis Museum is an overall experience, a voyage to the past and optics for the future. Thank you so much.
September 30, 2024