Where are their Heads? by T.SC. Used under Creative Commons.

The Acropolis Museum in Athens opens and the media whirlwind picks up again. Apparently, there was “fury” at Hannah Boulton’s statement about the British Museum loaning objects on conditions of recognition of the British Museum’s ownership.

Which has always been their policy.

Which Neil MacGregor said over two years ago.

I wonder where all this was drummed up from? When the Guardian’s Stephen Moss goes to visit the new museum who else talks to him but the Greek minister of culture Antonis Samaras.

“The museum is creating huge momentum, a crescendo all over the world, including England, where public opinion favours the return of the marbles.”

“This museum is a museum of symbols and ideas and the whole world will come. That creates pressure on its own… Our goal was to have the best museum in the world…”

“This is a new beginning and this is something that not just the Greeks want; I believe it will be the whole world. What we’re doing here is unique, and from what we see in the museum stems everything that came out in western culture. The pressure will mount. There are 25 committees all over the world asking for these pieces to come back.”

acropolis museum by Wurz. Used under Creative Commons.

This is where I can only state my opinions because any sense of rationality, accountability or objectivity left the conversation long ago: The Elgin Marbles should never be “given” back to Greece because the reasons should never be this shadowy Nationalism.

This is why I feel I can only state my honest-to-God subjective opinion on the matter. It’s not a moral issue because that’s pretty shaky ground to begin with. It’s not an ethical issue because it seemed the providence is pretty well known, definitely opportunistic, but not exactly underhand. The issue is purely and absolutely Political, hence why the discussion is a sea of varying degrees of opinion and little else. The British Museum, with its globalisation mindset and international outlook, are right to not encourage one museum’s Nationalistic ideology. Nationalistic symbols divide us, not unite us and it would be a greater tragedy if the Marbles became a symbol of Greece’s triumph over the British looters and the Turkish pillagers.

If you think that wouldn’t happen, they you have a far better opinion of politicians than I do.

Now, it wouldn’t be right of me to kick this hornet’s nest without coming up with a solution. Greece invented politics and diplomacy and are over-using one of then. Let’s try to use the other.

The trick would be to appeal to Neil MacGregor’s sense of global history. Create a new designated collection, call it The Birth of the West Collection or something. The tact for forming it would be this:

• We don’t want the Marbles back.
• We don’t want you to “Own” them either.
• We are both Public institutions acting in the Public Interest.
• We are both wishing to be on the International stage.

From that, you add objects to the collection from both museums, including all parts of the Marbles. Then, you tour like you’ve never toured before. Have that collection go all around the globe with the Acropolis and British Museum’s names at the top of the posters like big-shot film executives. The BM gets to advance its position as the leaders in museum globalisation. The AC get to advertise their position globally as being THE museum of the beginnings of Western-liberal-democracy that makes globalisation possible.

And you make a lot of money.

At the end of the tour, the two directors shake hands and maybe one says, “You know, that was fun and has really raised the profile of both museums to new heights. Wouldn’t it be good if we could do that all the time?”

Then, just kick around the idea, break new ground. Two international museum in the Public’s… no, no, no, in the Global Citizen’s interests (yeah!) form a Partnership for (let’s say…) ten years to have the joint ownership responsibility over a vital piece of Greek (therefore the world’s) history. A decade-long loan to a constitutional organisation that both museums have a 50% stake in to reach as many people as possible. The Anglo-Hellenic Museum Trust.

Then let’s see what happens. When you look at it, the Acropolis Museum would have everything to gain in exchange for losing their sense of Nationalism.

(Sensible discussion and arguments in the comments please. Ad hominem arguments will be deleted)