Posted on: March 10, 2015 by Alexander Herman
Yesterday, an ‘early day motion‘ was presented before the UK Parliament by MP Andrew George calling on Britain to engage in a ‘gracious act’ and reunite the sculptures at the British Museum (aka the Elgin Marbles) with those kept in Athens’s purpose-built Acropolis Museum, ‘in the shadow of the monument to which they belong’. More specifically, the motion calls […]
Posted on: March 9, 2015 by Ruth Redmond-Cooper
There has been a slew of media coverage in the UK and elsewhere on the reported destruction by agents of the Islamic State (ISIS) of the unequalled archaeological site of Nimrud in Iraq. While many of the reliefs, wall paintings and a number of the mythical winged bull gatekeepers are kept out of harm’s way […]
Posted on: February 9, 2015 by Alexander Herman
At the Institute of Art and Law, we often speak of ‘law as artefact’. This is a twist on the usual law of artefacts, which has been the centrepiece of the Institute’s courses and publications for over twenty years. Professor Norman Palmer, in his Institute lectures, often makes reference to the Cyrus Cylinder at the British Museum or […]
Posted on: January 28, 2015 by Alexander Herman
All eyes in Europe were turned towards Greece this past Sunday as the general election resulted in a victory for the Coalition of the Radical Left (SIRIZA) led by the young Alexis Tsipras. Following a surprising union with a right-wing anti-austerity party, ANEL, the coalition now has a majority in the legislature and Tsipras has become Prime Minister. His cabinet was sworn in yesterday. As […]
Posted on: December 11, 2014 by Alexander Herman
It was a front page story in The Times of London last Friday. It was on the front page of the New York Times the next day. But generally, how has the reaction been to the trustees of the British Museum loaning the statue of river god Ilissus to the Hermitage in St Petersburg? To say the least, it caught […]
Posted on: November 11, 2014 by Alexander Herman
Much has been said in the media of late about the Greek claim to the Elgin Marbles. But last week came a response from the director of the British Museum, Neil MacGregor. It was written up in The Times on Friday 7 November, but is sadly unavailable online to non-subsribers. In response to the claims made […]
Posted on: October 29, 2014 by Ruth Redmond-Cooper
Former Australian Prime Minister Gough Whitlam passed away last week at the age of 98. He had served as Prime Minister between 1972 to 1975, during a turbulent period of Australia’s history. He had also spoken at an Institute of Art and Law event in 2001 on the topic of the Parthenon (or Elgin) Marbles. He was […]