Parthenon Marbles May Return to Greece in Exchange Deal With UK

  • Cultural institutions close in on deal to end decades-old feud
  • Agreement could see London display artifacts loaned by Greece

Sections of the Elgin Marbles at The British Museum in London. 

Photographer: Graham Barclay/Getty Images
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The British Museum and the Acropolis Museum in Athens are closing in on an agreement that would see the Parthenon Marbles returned over time to Greece as part of a cultural exchange, ending a feud over the historical artifacts that dates back to the 1800s.

An agreement would see a proportion of the marbles sent to Athens on rotation over several years, according to people familiar with the matter, who declined to be identified because a deal hasn’t been sealed. In exchange, other objects would effectively be loaned to the museum in London, and Britain could also get plaster copies of the Parthenon sculptures.