London, Thanasis Gavos

A “cultural cooperation agreement” for the reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures in Athens, without any of Greece and Britain backing down on the issue of ownership, was presented by the Parthenon Project organization.

Under this proposal by the organization, the place of the Sculptures in the British Museum would be taken by other ancient Greek treasures for periodic exhibitions with a ticket, which would bring financial benefit to the London cultural institution.

In addition, a non-profit transnational foundation with an equal number of administrators from Greece and Britain would be established to finance educational and cultural activities for the benefit of the new generations.

The Parthenon Project organization was founded in London by the Greek plastics industrialist Yiannis Lefa and has been strongly involved in the efforts to reunite the Sculptors in the last two years.

“We call on both the British Museum trustees and the Greek government to adopt this agreement or include it in their own agreement, as it crucially allows both sides to agree that they disagree on the issue of ownership of the Parthenon Sculptures. “Both sides would recognize that for the time being they do not share the same position (on the property),” said a representative of the Parthenon Project.

The “landmark” proposal, as characterized by the organization itself, has been brought to the attention of both the Greek government and the chairman of the commissioners of the British Museum, George Osborne.

However, Mr. Osborne, referring to a column in the Spectator magazine, reiterated that a solution is being explored by which the Sculptures could be exhibited in both Athens and London, something he had said weeks ago on BBC radio.

“Maybe we’ll succeed, maybe not, but it’s worth trying,” Mr Osborne wrote.

The Parthenon Project’s announcement highlighted as ancient Greek artefacts that could be sent to London the 3,600-year-old Portrait of Agamemnon and the Pais of Kritius or other masterpieces in the Acropolis Museum that predate the Parthenon. These are exhibits that have never left Greece.

As for the proposed foundation, it will seek to attract supporters and donors from around the world to fund research programmes, student exchanges and educational programmes, as well as renovation work and the conversion of the British Museum’s Duvin Hall which currently houses the Sculptures into a Greek Hall . Through the donations, the renovation work of the National Archaeological Museum of Athens could also be financed.

As for the thorny issue of ownership of the Sculptures, the Parthenon Project considers the cultural cooperation agreement to be in line with the 1963 law which prohibits the British Museum from permanently removing exhibits from its collection.

Lawyers and people involved in the case have told SKAI in the past months that crucial to any agreement would be the terminology chosen to describe the act of returning the Sculptors from London to Athens, as the adjective “permanent” and the word “loan” cannot be accepted by one side or the other.

The chairman of the Parthenon Project, Lord Ed Vesey, former Secretary of State for Culture in the United Kingdom, commented that “an issue for centuries requires a fresh solution” and assessed that the organization’s proposal is mutually beneficial for Britain and Greece.

Parthenon Project Board member and famous British actor Stephen Fry said that “history has shown that good faith, trust and mutual respect can, with time and patience, remove the most insurmountable obstacles.”

As the Sunday Times reports, the Parthenon Project has inspired its proposal from the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement in Northern Ireland.

The text of that agreement, which ended decades of violent unrest between unionists and republicans, reads: “We recognize the significant differences between our continuing and equally legitimate political aspirations. However, we will seek to work in every practical way towards reconciliation and rapprochement within the framework of democratic and agreed settlements.”