The Vatican Museums’ previously displayed carved heads of a boy, a horse, and a bearded man have now been revealed in Athens.
Pope Francis’ desire to address a past injustice has resulted in the official restitution of three intricately carved Parthenon fragments from the Vatican to Greece.
At sunset on Friday, the sculptures were unveiled on the upper floor of the Acropolis Museum in Athens, which was constructed specifically to exhibit the marbles in view of the fifth-century monument.
The Archbishop of Athens, Ieronymos II, addressed the packed gallery at the museum, stating that “This act by Pope Francis is of historical significance and has a positive impact on multiple levels. My personal wish is that others will imitate it.”
While a much larger collection of artworks removed from the temple over 200 years ago under contentious circumstances remains in the British Museum, the fragments that were repatriated had also been held in the Vatican Museums for over two centuries.
Officials noted that not only had the head of a boy, the head of a horse, and the head of a bearded man returned to their original location where they were carved 5,000 years ago, but their homecoming was also one more step towards the reunification of artworks that are considered the pinnacle of classical art.
For decades, there has been a dispute between two countries over the removal of statuary from the fifth-century BC temple at the request of Lord Elgin, who was then Britain’s ambassador to the Ottoman Empire. Athens has maintained that the antiquities, which were acquired by the British Museum in 1816, were forcibly detached from the monument with the assistance of marble saws. Despite widespread reports that the British Museum was engaged in covert negotiations with Greece aimed at finding a “win-win solution,” hopes of resolving the cultural conflict were dashed last week when Rishi Sunak rejected any suggestion that the artifacts were being returned to Athens.
Greek officials, on the other hand, claim that the Vatican’s action will undoubtedly increase the pressure on London “to do the right thing.”
