Officials of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna are in talks to loan two fragments of the Parthenon Marbles to Greece, putting more pressure on the British Museum to reconsider its stance on its Parthenon collection.
At a press conference earlier this week, Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg confirmed that negotiations were underway, saying: “We are proud of our culture, we are proud of our history and we share excellent cultural relations. In this context, I am very happy that technical discussions are taking place between the Kunsthistorisches Museum and the Acropolis Museum [in Athens] on the mutual borrowings of the Parthenon frieze.”
“Our common goal is to contribute to the understanding of its universal importance for European cultural heritage. It is important beyond the borders of Greece because we all know that…. Athens is the cradle of European democracy. I am hopeful that the talks can move forward very quickly and that the marbles will be exhibited in Athens.
Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias replied that this gesture “will create a momentum that we can use in our discussions in London which I hope we will carry out successfully at the end of the day”. Earlier this year, George Osborne, the president of the British Museum, confirmed that he was continuing negotiations with the Greek government to devise a “hybrid” agreement regarding the restitution of the Parthenon marbles.
Dendias also referred to other institutions that have returned fragments of the Parthenon, such as the Regional Archaeological Museum Antonino Salinas in Palermo, SicilyAnd The Vatican which announced its decision to return three fragments of the Parthenon in March. “It will be the third and for us it is of very great importance,” he added.
According to the Kunsthistorisches Museum website, one of the Parthenon fragments shows “the heads of two elderly, bearded men facing each other, [it] comes from the northern frieze of the Parthenon in Athens and belongs to the group of so-called thallophores, worthy citizens who take part in processions with olive branches in their hands”.
The other fragment represents two young horsemen and comes from the north frieze of the Parthenon. “It was probably acquired in Venice by the Marquis Tommaso Obizzi (d. 1803), the founder of the Esten collection at Catajo Castle near Este (Padua, Italy),” the statement added online. The museum did not respond to a request for comment.
