Greece’s President Prokopios Pavlopoulos has called for the UK to return the Parthenon Sculptures from the “murky prison” of the British Museum.
Speaking at the Acropolis Museum in Athens on Monday, Pavlopoulos said: “Let the British Museum come here and make the comparison between this museum of light and the murky, if I may say, prison of the British Museum where the Parthenon Marbles are held as trophies.”
The Parthenon Sculptures were a part of the Acropolis in Athens before they were stolen in the early 1800s by British Lord Elgin and put on display in London.
The institution has recently ruled out returning the sculptures, although it has not yet responded to the latest call – the likes of which Greek politicians have regularly made for decades.
Greece has repeatedly requested their return since its independence in 1832 and stepped up its campaign in 2009 when the Acropolis Museum opened at the foot of the Acropolis hill.
"This museum can host the Marbles," Pavlopoulos said. "We are fighting a holy battle for a monument which is unique."
