Greece reacts angrily to Britain’s Elgin Marbles fashion show

Greece’s Minister of Culture Lina Mendoni has reacted angrily to the staging of a London Fashion Week show at the British Museum using the so-called Elgin Marbles as a backdrop.

British designer Erdem Moralioglu chose the Parthenon sculptures room to present the autumn-winter collection of his brand Erdem, inspired by Greek singer Maria Callas and her 1953 interpretation of the opera Medea.

The sculptures, crafted by the ancient Greek painter and architect Pheidias, were removed from the Parthenon temple at the Acropolis in the early 19th century by British diplomat Thomas Bruce, the earl of Elgin.

Athens says the marbles were stolen, while Britain claims they were obtained legally.

“By organising a fashion show in the halls where the Parthenon sculptures are exhibited, the British Museum once again proves its zero respect for the masterpieces of Pheidias,” Ms Mendoni said. “The directors of the British Museum trivialise and insult not only the monument but also the universal values that it transmits.

“The conditions of display and storage of the sculptures, at the Duveen Gallery, are constantly deteriorating.” The “stolen and abused sculptural masterpieces” should be returned to Greece, she added.

A diplomatic row ignited last year when Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis expressed “displeasure” over British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s last-minute cancellation of a meeting that was supposed to cover the dispute.

It is believed Mr Sunak cancelled the meeting after comments from Mr Mitsotakis the previous day, that having some of the marbles in London and others in Athens was “like cutting the Mona Lisa in half”.

The British Museum is under pressure to return other antiquities after the Netherlands repatriated six valuable artefacts taken from Sri Lanka 250 years ago.

Other contested objects include the Benin Bronzes from what is now Nigeria, the Rosetta Stone from Egypt and two stone moai from Rapa Nui.