The trustees of the british museum make the following statement on the museum website in response to arguments for the relocation of the parthenon marbles to the acropolis museum.
Parthenon marbles british museum.
It was the centrepiece of an ambitious building programme on the acropolis of athens.
The parthenon was built as a temple dedicated to the goddess athena.
The acropolis museum allows the parthenon sculptures that are in athens to be appreciated against the backdrop of ancient greek and athenian history.
In 1801 a british nobleman stripped the parthenon of many of its sculptures and took them to england.
The temple s great size and lavish use of white marble was intended to show off.
Elgin marbles collection of ancient greek sculptures and architectural details in the british museum london where they are now called the parthenon sculptures.
The parthenon sculptures in the british museum.
Ian jenkins the parthenon sculptures in the british museum british museum press 2007 ian jenkins greek architecture and its sculpture in the british museum british museum press 2006 mary beard the parthenon profile 2002 william st clair lord elgin and the marbles 3rd edition oxford university press 1998.
The 2 500 year old sculptures were illegally torn off the parthenon in the 1800s taken to england and sold to the museum in 1816 by lord elgin.
The parthenon marbles a major money making display at the british museum have been the subject of an ongoing dispute between greece and the uk.