Museums and National Identity: The Case of the Parthenon Sculptures

Title: Museums and National Identity: The Case of the Parthenon Sculptures
Author: Betsy McDonald
Date: 1/1/2009
Abstract: The controversy over ownership for the Parthenon Sculptures between Britain and Greece
questions the role of museums, specifically the British Museum, in the promotion of national
identity in the late twentieth century. An analysis of this controversy suggests that museums,
while helping maintain a national identity, also promote a global identity, albeit inadvertently.
This paper seeks to examine the interaction between nationalism and museums, with a view to
assessing what significance the Parthenon Sculptures have in the British Museum. Additionally,
it attempts to presents the Greek demand for the return of these sculptures in context of the
opening of the new Acropolis Museum in June of 2009 in Athens.
Type: Text
Keywords: Museum; Identity; Parthenon; Sculpture
Language: eng
Rights: Western Oregon University Library has determined, as of 06/09/2022, this item is in copyright, which is held by the author. Users may use the item in accordance with copyright limitations and exceptions, including fair use. For other uses, please ask permission from the author.; http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Department: History
Identifier: his/207