The Caryatids and Issues of Repatriation

Preface: I am by no means an expert on either ancient history or issues surrounding repatriation. This is a compilation of research that I've done. I will link sources where necessary in text and provide a list of sources at the end of this entry! I will always note when a conclusion I draw is my own opinion (which will be most of the time), and when my opinion is echoed by, similar too, informed by the opinions of experts.

Welcome to my first "lesson plan"/"lecture" style post. This is a format similar to what I would use as a rough draft for a paper, though there will be editing and consideration made for clarity. I hope that the way I've laid this out is acceptable and makes for easy reading. If you think there is a way to improve future "lecture" posts please don't hesitate to let me know!

For now, enjoy learning about the Caryatids, repatriation, and what it means for museums.

The Caryatids and Issues of Repatriation

I think the best place to start will be to explain, in a very basic sense, what repatriation means. Khan Academy defines repatriation as "the return of stolen or looted artifacts to the countries of origins." To go even further in depth, The Field Museum tells us that, domestically, within the United States, the act of repatriation follows the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) and works to find cultural items and human remains and see them returned to the proper individual descendants and descendant communities. In international terms, the Field Museum states that they [the Field Museum] take full consideration for repatriation requests for the return of funerary items and human remains to "culturally affiliated descendants for whom NAGPRA does not apply."

There are further examples of international repatriations, with France, Belgium, and Germany returning artifacts to various countries in Africa. Additionally, and more relevantly to the Caryatids that I'll be discussing soon, Sicily returned the portion of the Parthenon's frieze that was in the custody of the Antionio Salinas Regional Archaeological Museum. Currently this repatriation effort is part of a deal, sending the frieze to Athens and two objects (a headless statues and an amphora) to Sicily; set to expire in 2026 there is opportunity to extend it four another four years, while efforts are being made to make the repatriation of the frieze to Greece permanent.

This deal has also been noted to have cleared the way and provided a blueprint for the British Museum to begin planning to return a group of objects known as the Elgin Marbles.

"The Elgin Marbles" refer to a group of marble works from the Acropolis in Athens, Greece. Included in this group are: 15 metopes (square spaces often decorated with relief sculptures), 17 pedimental figures (a pediment is a triangular space as part of a gabled roof, often found above entry ways), and 75 meters of the frieze from the Parthenon (the frieze was originally 160 meters). One of these marbles that was brought to the British Museum is a tall columnar structure in the shape of a woman.

She is tall, over life size, standing at 2.23 meters/7 feet tall. Her hair is sculpted into a braid down her back and on her head rests a basket made to bear the weight of a building on top. She wears a simple Peplos tunic, belted at the waist, which cascades down her body in beautiful folds. She stands in contrapposto, her let leg holding majority of her weight while her right leg is bent at the knee. She is missing one hand, that may have held a sacrificial vessel at one point in time.

This astoundingly beautiful woman is known as a Caryatid (pronunciation guide: carry-ah-tid-). There are five more just like her at the Acropolis Museum in Athens. These five "sisters" leave a space open for the missing, while the Greek government attempts to reunite the six Caryatids as well as the rest of the marbles.

These artifacts were taken from Greece by a man named Thomas Bruce, aka Lord Elgin, in 1802. During this period in history, Greece was under the rule of the Ottoman Empire and Elgin had documented clearance to start an archaeological dig near on the Acropolis. Despite this, it is debated weather or not he had permission to remove anything from the country.

Part of the British Museums arguments for keeping the collection of marbles comes from the belief that Elgin took these artifacts from the rubble. However, multiple experts have chimed in after examining the objects stating that this is not true. Anthony Snodgrass, a renowned classical archaeologist, has said that after examining the metopes from the Parthenon he can say that they were "violently detached." He has also been quoted saying that "it's incorrect to say that much of what Elgin took was already on the ground."

In 2022 the deputy director of the British Museum was quoted saying "there will never be a magic moment of reunification because half the sculptures from Parthenon are lost forever." Which to me is saying that there's no point in returning the marbles because the Parthenon will never really be whole again. Which is true, there were many statues destroyed and the building is in some state of ruin, however displaying the marbles in their true historical context sounds, to me, to be the best way of displaying them. Boris Johnson was also quoted saying that although he had "reflected deeply" on the marbles he thought that it would be a "grievous and irremediable loss if they left the British Museum."

This statement is, to me, incredibly insensitive. While I understand that individuals form attachments and memories with objects that they interact with, and that these objects may be very beloved within the British Museum, they are much more significant to Greece. Another issue I take is with a statement made on the British Museum website.

The argument we are presented is as follows: the sculptures "convey the influences between Egyptian, Persian, Greek and Roman civilizations and argues that they are best presented in this context." While I assume that these sculptures are being presented to an audience in a setting that shows examples from each of these cultures, I don't think that the argument is as solid as it may first seem. The historical, cultural, and environmental contexts are all still very much present elsewhere in the world. The Acropolis museum is five minutes away from the Acropolis (according to Google Maps). The Erechtheion Temple, where the Caryatids originate, is still extant and you can see faithful and detailed replicas at the original site. While it may be a wonderful opportunity to see artifacts from different cultures displayed near to one another, it is still much more beneficial to see them in their original context. This allows for a greater understanding of the object. Its use, its aesthetic, how it may have gotten to its location, all of these are better understood in its original location. Once removed, an object may lose meaning to some extent because of the lack of context.

It is my opinion that Greece is not being unreasonable in asking for negotiations regarding the repatriation of these artifacts. In the case of Sicily's repatriation negotiations, Greece has exchanged other artifacts for the frieze portion. The Greek Government has also offered an exchange with the British Museum, allowing for artifacts to visit the museum that have never before left the country. As far as I know, nothing has been done with this offer. The British Museum has offered for the Elgin Marbles to go on tour and visit places like the Acropolis Museum, however the Acropolis Museum and Greek government have turned this down in hopes of holding out for a permanent repatriation deal. The British government has tried to surrender the issue to the board of trustees at the British Museum, but UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization) has ruled that due to how much government involvement would be necessary in the process, the British government would have to be involved to some degree.

Greece is still fighting to bring home the sixth "sister" of its Caryatids, as well as the rest of its stolen artifacts, and repatriation efforts by Italy, Germany, France, and Belgium have provided Kytiakos Mitsotakis, the Prime Minister of Greece, with hope. Especially considering that "the majority of Britions," 59%, "appear to support" the efforts to repatriate the artifacts.

The issue of repatriation is one of cultural importance, not only within the United States but also internationally. In cases like the one of the British Museum it feels to me like a left over of colonialism and imperialism, but thats just my thoughts on it. This summer I will be making a trip to the British Museum while I'm in London and it is my goal to see the Caryatid that is in their possession. Later on I definitely want to make an effort to see the other five "sisters" at the Acropolis Museum. It is my genuine hope that I will see the return of the lost "sister" to Athens so that I can see them in their natural home.

At the very bottom of the page will be the places that I found the images used as well as a the links used in this post and extra citations that aren't noted in text. Like I said at the very top of this post, I am no where near an expert on these topics. This is all the research that I have found and interpreted within a fairly short span of time. I want to keep learning about issues of repatriation and it is my goal to help spread information about the topic as well. If there are any mistakes in this post please feel free to reach out and if you have any questions I can do my best to answer them.

Until next time, keep learning and exploring!

-Anne

First Image

Second Image

Third Image

https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/G_1816-0610-128

https://greekreporter.com/2022/06/27/five-caryatids-athens-waiting-sister/

https://epochemagazine.org/38/once-upon-a-gaze-on-a-missing-column-at-the-acropolis-of-athens/

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2022/may/23/greece-rebuts-british-museum-claim-parthenon-marbles-were-removed-from-rubble

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2022/jan/10/time-has-come-for-uk-to-return-parthenon-marbles-says-greek-pm

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2022/jan/05/italy-returns-parthenon-marbles-fragment-greece-uk-row

https://architecturecompetitions.com/the-3-orders-of-ancient-greek-architecture