Britain May Have to Return the Elgin Marbles to Greece in Post-Brexit EU Trade Deal
Now that the UK has officially left the EU as of January 31, concluding more than three years of uncertainty, the terms of a post-Brexit trade deal are being worked out. There's a lot on the table in this negotiation, but one of the most unexpected turns out to be the Elgin Marbles, which Britain may be forced to return to Greece.
The Times reports that Greece demanded a "return and restitution" clause be inserted into the current draft of the negotiating mandate, which may ultimately require Britain to return the 5th century BC marbles. The clause requires that both parties "address issues relating to the return or restitution of unlawfully removed cultural objects to their country of origin."
Though the clause is not specifically about the marbles, Greece has long maintained that the marble sculptures were stolen from the Parthenon temple in Athens over 200 years ago, by the British diplomat Lord Elgin.
A spokesperson for the British Museum, where the marbles are currently on display, said that the museum welcomed any measures to fight "the trade in illicit antiquities across the world”, but denied that the marbles had been stolen.
“We work in partnership with law enforcement agencies to identify and help to return objects that come into the UK illegally,” the museum's statement said. “The Parthenon sculptures were legally acquired and help us to tell the story of human history presented at the museum. They are accessible to the six million global visitors the museum receives each year.”
The draft text of the mandate is circulating among EU governments this week, and is expected to be signed off on next week. If this mandate is ratified, Greece is almost certain to demand the return of the marbles.
Though there is no guarantee, an EU ambassador told The Times that "it is a measure of how Brexit has changed the game that the Greeks feel able to use the trade talks to pursue the Elgin Marbles.”
There is, in other words, a real possibility that Britain will lose its marbles over Brexit.
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