Elginism
@elginism.bsky.social
Parthenon Sculptures (AKA Elgin Marbles) plus other cultural property disputes, museums, art law, archaeology, architecture & Greece.
Formerly London based, now in Sydney.
Formerly London based, now in Sydney.
Australia's High Court has upheld the forfeiture of a pre-Columbian artefact illegally exported from Bolivia over 70 years ago, under the Protection of Movable Cultural Heritage Act 1986, despite the recipe happening more than 30 years before the Act came into force.
www.linkedin.com/redir/redire...
www.linkedin.com/redir/redire...
Australia’s Top Court Affirms Government’s Broad Powers to Seize Cultural Artefacts
An artefact taken from the ruins of Tiwanaku and illegally exported from Bolivia more than 70 years ago has been seized by Australian customs officers and found by Australia’s highest court to be l…
www.linkedin.com
November 21, 2025 at 6:54 AM
Australia's High Court has upheld the forfeiture of a pre-Columbian artefact illegally exported from Bolivia over 70 years ago, under the Protection of Movable Cultural Heritage Act 1986, despite the recipe happening more than 30 years before the Act came into force.
www.linkedin.com/redir/redire...
www.linkedin.com/redir/redire...
Today is the 50th anniversary of the dismissal of Gough Whitlam by the governor general - a dark moment for democracy in Australia.
It's worth recalling a less known fact about the man though - Whitlam was a staunch supporter of the return of the Parthenon Marbles.
www.elginism.com/elgin-marble...
It's worth recalling a less known fact about the man though - Whitlam was a staunch supporter of the return of the Parthenon Marbles.
www.elginism.com/elgin-marble...
RIP Gough Whitlam - Parthenon Marbles reunification supporter
Former Australian Prime Minister Gough Whitlam was a long time supporter of the Reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures. I was fortunate enough to see
www.elginism.com
November 11, 2025 at 6:03 PM
Today is the 50th anniversary of the dismissal of Gough Whitlam by the governor general - a dark moment for democracy in Australia.
It's worth recalling a less known fact about the man though - Whitlam was a staunch supporter of the return of the Parthenon Marbles.
www.elginism.com/elgin-marble...
It's worth recalling a less known fact about the man though - Whitlam was a staunch supporter of the return of the Parthenon Marbles.
www.elginism.com/elgin-marble...
Reposted by Elginism
Parliament accepted the firman may have allowed Elgin to denude the Parthenon, but certainly didn't allow him to carry out the ancient Scots Law crime of Violation of Sepulchre.
Elgin knew that, but t'was only Greek graves & they didn't matter!
@elginism.bsky.social
www.tomminogue.com/tom/?p=2350
Elgin knew that, but t'was only Greek graves & they didn't matter!
@elginism.bsky.social
www.tomminogue.com/tom/?p=2350
Elgin's Grave Robbery largely unreported [Long read..but worth it we think!] - Tomminogue.com
Opposing @PoliceScotland view of Turkish gold wreath I find to my £cost Elgin's Memorandum was pure fiction. But I knew that so more fool me
www.tomminogue.com
November 9, 2025 at 10:55 AM
Parliament accepted the firman may have allowed Elgin to denude the Parthenon, but certainly didn't allow him to carry out the ancient Scots Law crime of Violation of Sepulchre.
Elgin knew that, but t'was only Greek graves & they didn't matter!
@elginism.bsky.social
www.tomminogue.com/tom/?p=2350
Elgin knew that, but t'was only Greek graves & they didn't matter!
@elginism.bsky.social
www.tomminogue.com/tom/?p=2350
77-year-old Chilean engineer Enrico Tosti-Croce thought he had a fragment of the Parthenon, picked up by his father Gaetano in 1930.
Hearing a radio program about the Elgin Marbles prompted him to return it, & he discovered it was older than he had supposed.
www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a...
Hearing a radio program about the Elgin Marbles prompted him to return it, & he discovered it was older than he had supposed.
www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a...
A Man Brought His Father’s ‘Piece of the Parthenon’ to Greek Officials. They Said It Was From an Even Older Temple in the Acropolis of Athens
The engraved marble fragment likely came from an archaic temple called the Hekatompedon, making it around 2,600 years old
www.smithsonianmag.com
November 10, 2025 at 9:24 PM
77-year-old Chilean engineer Enrico Tosti-Croce thought he had a fragment of the Parthenon, picked up by his father Gaetano in 1930.
Hearing a radio program about the Elgin Marbles prompted him to return it, & he discovered it was older than he had supposed.
www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a...
Hearing a radio program about the Elgin Marbles prompted him to return it, & he discovered it was older than he had supposed.
www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a...
A new documentary by David Wilkinson titled The Marbles claims to settle the long-standing debate over the legal status of the Parthenon Sculptures, also known as the Elgin Marbles, stating unequivocally that these ancient sculptures were stolen from Greece.
greekreporter.com/2025/11/09/n...
greekreporter.com/2025/11/09/n...
New Documentary Says Parthenon Sculptures Stolen in "Greatest Heist in Art History" - GreekReporter.com
A new documentary claims "beyond a shadow of a doubt" that the Parthenon Sculptures were stolen, according to the director.
greekreporter.com
November 10, 2025 at 9:18 PM
A new documentary by David Wilkinson titled The Marbles claims to settle the long-standing debate over the legal status of the Parthenon Sculptures, also known as the Elgin Marbles, stating unequivocally that these ancient sculptures were stolen from Greece.
greekreporter.com/2025/11/09/n...
greekreporter.com/2025/11/09/n...
Reposted by Elginism
World premiere of THE MARBLES opening night film at the Central Scot. Documentary Festival sold out.
We have people attending from Glasgow, Aberdeen, Manchester, Birmingham & London, & Nick Drossos/ family & friends coming from Melbourne, Aus.
Q&A Dame Janet Suzman & Neil Curtis.
We have people attending from Glasgow, Aberdeen, Manchester, Birmingham & London, & Nick Drossos/ family & friends coming from Melbourne, Aus.
Q&A Dame Janet Suzman & Neil Curtis.
October 29, 2025 at 12:09 PM
World premiere of THE MARBLES opening night film at the Central Scot. Documentary Festival sold out.
We have people attending from Glasgow, Aberdeen, Manchester, Birmingham & London, & Nick Drossos/ family & friends coming from Melbourne, Aus.
Q&A Dame Janet Suzman & Neil Curtis.
We have people attending from Glasgow, Aberdeen, Manchester, Birmingham & London, & Nick Drossos/ family & friends coming from Melbourne, Aus.
Q&A Dame Janet Suzman & Neil Curtis.
LSE dropout son of Tory party activist & PE teacher has no opinion about the Parthenon Marbles.
greekcitytimes.com/2025/11/04/m...
greekcitytimes.com/2025/11/04/m...
greekcitytimes.com
November 5, 2025 at 9:17 PM
LSE dropout son of Tory party activist & PE teacher has no opinion about the Parthenon Marbles.
greekcitytimes.com/2025/11/04/m...
greekcitytimes.com/2025/11/04/m...
The Bayeux tapestry is so fragile that transporting it risks irreparable damage, French experts have said, in a petition urging Emmanuel Macron to reverse a “catastrophic” decision to loan the unique embroidery to Britain.
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...
‘La tapisserie, c’est moi’: Macron accused of putting politics first in Bayeux tapestry loan
Organiser of petition says French president ignoring expert advice that artefact too fragile to be transported to UK
www.theguardian.com
August 30, 2025 at 4:21 AM
The Bayeux tapestry is so fragile that transporting it risks irreparable damage, French experts have said, in a petition urging Emmanuel Macron to reverse a “catastrophic” decision to loan the unique embroidery to Britain.
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...
Times change. So, too, do people. Human sensitivities evolve with age and self-education and understanding. Unlike some institutions like the British Museum, however, which seem to remain largely intransigent.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Times change, so do people. So why does the British Museum still think it’s OK to display human remains? | Paul Daley
Bodies and body parts have long been part of collections of imperial plunder over the years – but museums must understand that attitudes have moved on
www.theguardian.com
August 7, 2025 at 10:21 AM
Times change. So, too, do people. Human sensitivities evolve with age and self-education and understanding. Unlike some institutions like the British Museum, however, which seem to remain largely intransigent.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
A small marble fragment believed to be from a 6th-century B.C. temple on the Acropolis (before the Parthenon) has been voluntarily returned to Greece by a family in Chile that had held it for nearly a century, the Greek culture ministry announced.
www.iefimerida.gr/english/anci...
www.iefimerida.gr/english/anci...
Ancient Acropolis Fragment Repatriated to Greece from Chile - iefimerida.gr
A small marble fragment believed to be from a 6th-century B.C. temple on the Acropolis has been voluntarily returned to Greece by a family in Chile that had held it for nearly a century, the culture m...
www.iefimerida.gr
July 27, 2025 at 1:57 AM
A small marble fragment believed to be from a 6th-century B.C. temple on the Acropolis (before the Parthenon) has been voluntarily returned to Greece by a family in Chile that had held it for nearly a century, the Greek culture ministry announced.
www.iefimerida.gr/english/anci...
www.iefimerida.gr/english/anci...
Reposted by Elginism
New Case: The Cleveland Bronze, contributed by Michela Herbert
Today the Cleveland Museum will take its iconic Roman bronze sculpture off display and return it to Türkiye after a failed attempt to deny its origins in the heavily looted site of Bubon.
mola.omeka.net/items/show/2...
Today the Cleveland Museum will take its iconic Roman bronze sculpture off display and return it to Türkiye after a failed attempt to deny its origins in the heavily looted site of Bubon.
mola.omeka.net/items/show/2...
July 15, 2025 at 2:09 PM
New Case: The Cleveland Bronze, contributed by Michela Herbert
Today the Cleveland Museum will take its iconic Roman bronze sculpture off display and return it to Türkiye after a failed attempt to deny its origins in the heavily looted site of Bubon.
mola.omeka.net/items/show/2...
Today the Cleveland Museum will take its iconic Roman bronze sculpture off display and return it to Türkiye after a failed attempt to deny its origins in the heavily looted site of Bubon.
mola.omeka.net/items/show/2...
Reposted by Elginism
good evening to everyone except the hard-right culture warriors and those who would appease them 🔥✨❤️
July 15, 2025 at 8:43 PM
good evening to everyone except the hard-right culture warriors and those who would appease them 🔥✨❤️
Reposted by Elginism
an important documentary about returning the dead from German museums, I am in there somewhere around minute 22
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w...
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w...
BBC World Service - The Documentary, The kidnapped dead: Germany’s stolen skulls
Thousands of human remains are held in German museums. Why can’t they go back?
www.bbc.co.uk
July 17, 2025 at 7:34 AM
an important documentary about returning the dead from German museums, I am in there somewhere around minute 22
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w...
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w...
Press release from yesterday's Reuniting the Parthenon Marbles event organised by Andrew George MP. I wasn't able to attend, but it was good to see a lot of familiar faces in the photos.
www.elginism.com/elgin-marble...
www.elginism.com/elgin-marble...
Reuniting the Parthenon Sculptures event
Andrew George MP, the chair of the British Association for the Reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures, hosted a reception in Portcullis House yesterday
www.elginism.com
July 17, 2025 at 10:54 AM
Press release from yesterday's Reuniting the Parthenon Marbles event organised by Andrew George MP. I wasn't able to attend, but it was good to see a lot of familiar faces in the photos.
www.elginism.com/elgin-marble...
www.elginism.com/elgin-marble...
Reposted by Elginism
Relooted, one of the most anticipated video games of 2025, allows players to take stolen African artifacts from Western museums and return them to their home countries.
AJ+ talked to one of the creators...
www.instagram.com/reel/DMETOk6...
AJ+ talked to one of the creators...
www.instagram.com/reel/DMETOk6...
July 14, 2025 at 8:21 PM
Relooted, one of the most anticipated video games of 2025, allows players to take stolen African artifacts from Western museums and return them to their home countries.
AJ+ talked to one of the creators...
www.instagram.com/reel/DMETOk6...
AJ+ talked to one of the creators...
www.instagram.com/reel/DMETOk6...
The looting of Iraq post fall of Saddam was more high profile - but we could be seeing a similar situation in slow motion, where large amounts of ancient heritage is illegally excavated and sold in plain sight.
Organisations that are facilitating sales of such artefacts need to do more to stop this.
Organisations that are facilitating sales of such artefacts need to do more to stop this.
Worrying podcast from @theguardian.com about the rapid rise of metal detecting in Syria lost Assad - and what it means for the preservation of the country's heritage.
www.theguardian.com/world/audio/...
www.theguardian.com/world/audio/...
Syria’s treasure hunting fever - podcast
What can be done to stop Syria’s unprecedented scramble for antiquities? William Christou reports
www.theguardian.com
July 15, 2025 at 5:35 AM
The looting of Iraq post fall of Saddam was more high profile - but we could be seeing a similar situation in slow motion, where large amounts of ancient heritage is illegally excavated and sold in plain sight.
Organisations that are facilitating sales of such artefacts need to do more to stop this.
Organisations that are facilitating sales of such artefacts need to do more to stop this.
Nigel Farage's support for keeping the Parthenon Marbles in the UK ought to help convince many who were on the fence (often through lack of in depth knowledge of the issue) that returning them is clearly the right side to take.
July 15, 2025 at 5:30 AM
Nigel Farage's support for keeping the Parthenon Marbles in the UK ought to help convince many who were on the fence (often through lack of in depth knowledge of the issue) that returning them is clearly the right side to take.
Reposted by Elginism
Here starts the campaign for Britain to repatriate the plundered acronym "PAC", in fact the whole concept. It belongs in the US of A.
"Great British Pac calls for an end to any negotiations to return the Parthenon sculptures or risk legal challenges."
www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...
"Great British Pac calls for an end to any negotiations to return the Parthenon sculptures or risk legal challenges."
www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...
July 14, 2025 at 8:15 AM
Here starts the campaign for Britain to repatriate the plundered acronym "PAC", in fact the whole concept. It belongs in the US of A.
"Great British Pac calls for an end to any negotiations to return the Parthenon sculptures or risk legal challenges."
www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...
"Great British Pac calls for an end to any negotiations to return the Parthenon sculptures or risk legal challenges."
www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...
Worrying podcast from @theguardian.com about the rapid rise of metal detecting in Syria lost Assad - and what it means for the preservation of the country's heritage.
www.theguardian.com/world/audio/...
www.theguardian.com/world/audio/...
Syria’s treasure hunting fever - podcast
What can be done to stop Syria’s unprecedented scramble for antiquities? William Christou reports
www.theguardian.com
July 14, 2025 at 6:37 AM
Worrying podcast from @theguardian.com about the rapid rise of metal detecting in Syria lost Assad - and what it means for the preservation of the country's heritage.
www.theguardian.com/world/audio/...
www.theguardian.com/world/audio/...
The Bayeux tapestry will return to the UK for the first time in more than 900 years as part of a landmark reciprocal loan agreement by Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron - a great example of cultural cooperation.
www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...
www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...
Bayeux tapestry to return to Britain for first time in 900 years
Tapestry to go on display in British Museum next year, with treasures from Sutton Hoo lent to France in exchange
www.theguardian.com
July 9, 2025 at 10:47 PM
The Bayeux tapestry will return to the UK for the first time in more than 900 years as part of a landmark reciprocal loan agreement by Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron - a great example of cultural cooperation.
www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...
www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...
I've written half of a piece in City AM today on the Parthenon Marbles and whether they should return to Greece - it won't surprise you that I'm the one arguing on the Yes side.
www.cityam.com/the-debate-s...
www.cityam.com/the-debate-s...
The Debate: Should the British Museum return the Elgin Marbles?
As rumours about talks to repatriate the Elgin Marbles to Greece resurface, we get two experts to make the case for and against their return.
www.cityam.com
June 11, 2025 at 5:27 AM
I've written half of a piece in City AM today on the Parthenon Marbles and whether they should return to Greece - it won't surprise you that I'm the one arguing on the Yes side.
www.cityam.com/the-debate-s...
www.cityam.com/the-debate-s...
Interesting story just cropped up on @mattbevan.bsky.social's ever fascinating ABC - If You're Listening podcast.
What happened to the original bronze cast of Rodin's The Thinker from Cantor Fitzgerald's World Trade Center offices after 9-11?
www.abc.net.au/listen/progr...
What happened to the original bronze cast of Rodin's The Thinker from Cantor Fitzgerald's World Trade Center offices after 9-11?
www.abc.net.au/listen/progr...
Howard Lutnick and The Gates of Hell - ABC listen
When two planes crashed into the World Trade Center towers on September 11 2001 Howard Lutnick lost 658 of his colleagues. It was a tragedy of unthinkable proportions which we covered in last week’s e...
www.abc.net.au
May 20, 2025 at 9:57 AM
Interesting story just cropped up on @mattbevan.bsky.social's ever fascinating ABC - If You're Listening podcast.
What happened to the original bronze cast of Rodin's The Thinker from Cantor Fitzgerald's World Trade Center offices after 9-11?
www.abc.net.au/listen/progr...
What happened to the original bronze cast of Rodin's The Thinker from Cantor Fitzgerald's World Trade Center offices after 9-11?
www.abc.net.au/listen/progr...
Reposted by Elginism
I can’t believe this isn’t a spoof article. It seems to be supporting a very questionable approach to human remains. @babao2025meeting.bsky.social
www.thetimes.com/comment/colu...
www.thetimes.com/comment/colu...
Drinking from skulls is a noble tradition
Accusations of a tasteless custom by Oxford dons overlook a rite that has been going on in Britain since the Stone Age
www.thetimes.com
April 27, 2025 at 11:23 PM
I can’t believe this isn’t a spoof article. It seems to be supporting a very questionable approach to human remains. @babao2025meeting.bsky.social
www.thetimes.com/comment/colu...
www.thetimes.com/comment/colu...
It's isn't just museums who normalise colonial era acquired human remains:
Oxford academics drank from a chalice made from a human skull for decades, a book that explores the violent colonial history of looted human remains has revealed.
www.theguardian.com/science/2025...
Oxford academics drank from a chalice made from a human skull for decades, a book that explores the violent colonial history of looted human remains has revealed.
www.theguardian.com/science/2025...
Oxford academics drank from cup made from human skull until 2015, book reveals
Decades-long use of chalice at Worcester College highlights violent colonial history of looted human remains, says Prof Dan Hicks
www.theguardian.com
April 22, 2025 at 5:24 AM
It's isn't just museums who normalise colonial era acquired human remains:
Oxford academics drank from a chalice made from a human skull for decades, a book that explores the violent colonial history of looted human remains has revealed.
www.theguardian.com/science/2025...
Oxford academics drank from a chalice made from a human skull for decades, a book that explores the violent colonial history of looted human remains has revealed.
www.theguardian.com/science/2025...