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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Nathan B., post: 7995237, member: 112852&quot;]I tend not to get my knickers in a knot over the Elgin Marbles, or most other similar high-profile antiquities.&nbsp; The fact is that all that stuff happened a long time ago--many generations ago.&nbsp; There are no Greeks today who had grandparents alive when the Elgin Marbles were removed to Britain.&nbsp; If anyone has a claim to the Marbles, it&#039;s probably the British Museum, and the conservationists, scholars, custodial staff, and and so on who actually care for these sculptures in the present time.</p><p><br /></p><p>I feel the same way about landclaims.&nbsp; Argentina wants the Falkland Islands, despite the wishes of the islanders themselves.&nbsp; Spain wants Gibraltar back, despite the wishes of the majority of the citizens of Gibraltar.&nbsp; There are many aboriginal people who would actually be better off if every Caucasian person were permanently removed from the western hemisphere.&nbsp; It&#039;s just not possible to send all these people back to the Old World.</p><p><br /></p><p>And even if it were, why stop there?&nbsp; What about the land stolen from Saxons by the Normans, or the treasures stolen by the Saxons from the Celts?&nbsp; Nathan&#039;s Guide to World Peace: if you can&#039;t get it back within two generations, just forget about it and move on.</p><p><br /></p><p>I would make some exceptions.&nbsp; There are many priceless artefacts belonging to indigenous people that were essentially stolen from them (e.g. artefacts related to potlatches and so confiscated when those were made illegal by the Canadian government).&nbsp; I would like to see a quantity, from some to many to most to all, returned to these people, as long as suitable arrangements can be made for their security and preservation.&nbsp; Partly, I feel this way because the thefts were fairly recent: within the last 100 years or so.&nbsp; Partly it&#039;s because of the extreme traumas experienced by these people as a direct result of cultural genocide.&nbsp; And partly it&#039;s because of <i>how much</i> was taken: in some cases, virtually everything.</p><p><br /></p><p>For me, the important thing is that great antiquities (that have significant cultural value to all of humanity) that are kept in world-class museums currently should remain in world-class museums.&nbsp; And one of the advantages of living in the age of the internet is that many artefacts and artworks that are in museums are actually already accessible to all people, regardless of where they are in the world, as long as they have a cellphone or a computer, and an internet connection.</p><p><br /></p><p>Probably the most I would say is that there should be a legal mandate for these institutions to ensure that these artefacts are accessible online.&nbsp; Regulations, might include a requirement that images not only of the front, but also of the back, or a corner/side view be present.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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