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Appalling pictures of British Museum Hall hosting the Parthenon Marbles

Greek visitors to the British Museum in London were shocked to see mold and humidity in one of the most famous halls, the one hosting the Parthenon Marbles. The travelers from Crete shot pictures of the appalling conditions and sent “the evidence” to local media cretapost.

Eroded glass roof

They complained that there was mold in the hall, dampness and even spiders on the walls.

Molded roofs and walls

The Cretan visitors told cretapost that they could not take good pictures of the spiderwebs with their mobile phones.

It should be recalled that water was leaked into the Parthenon Marbles Hall after a heavy rainfall in 2018. As result of the leakage, water dripped next to the sculpture of Iris.

Back then, the British Museum has stated in a written statement that: ‘There was a small incident during a recent very heavy rainfall, when a small amount of water entered the gallery. None of the sculptures were damaged and the issue has been addressed.”

According to the Museum, all measures are being taken, as “preserving the collection is of fundamental importance to the British Museum”.

Prompt was the reaction of the Greek Culture ministry to the publication of the pictures late on Tuesday.

“The situation, as presented in the relative pictures, is very frustrating for the British Museum and extremely offensive against the exhibits, especially when the exhibits are the Parthenon Marbles, ” Culture Minister Lina Medoni said in a statement.

“The images of abandonment presented by the British Museum today reinforce Greece’s rightful demand for the permanent return of the Marbles to Athens and their reunification with the Parthenon,” Medoni stressed.

On its part, the British Museum declared that “the markings on the roof panels are repulsive, but they do not pose a threat to the objects.” it claimed that there was no mold and no danger for the ancient sculptures.

In a statement to the London correspondent of Skai TV, a Museum spokesman said “There is no evidence of mold in the Duveen Gallery.”

“The issue of water leakage was addressed when the incident occurred and did not occur over the area of the sculptures,” the spokesman said adding “we understand that the markings on the roof panels are repulsive, but they do not pose a threat to the objects.”

The spokesman said that “maintenance of the collection is of paramount importance to the British Museum, the maintenance and buildings team is constantly inspecting all areas where the collection is housed. There is absolutely no danger to the sculptures in the collection.”

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2 comments

  1. At least they are safe and haven’t been claimed by the Germans unlike the jewel in Athens

  2. Mould? I look after a small Museum in Melbourne. Mould, fungus and bugs (of all sorts) are our enemies. For this so called world class Museum to have such an infestation is p[roof why the Parthenon pieces are NOT safe there. The ICJ must be asked to adjudicate as to where the stolen artefacts belong.