Britain is legitimate owner of Parthenon marbles, UK's Johnson tells Greece

英国首相约翰逊告诉希腊,英国是帕台农神庙大理石雕的合法所有者


(The Parthenon Marbles, a collection of stone obiects, inscxtions and sculptures, also kmown as the Elgin Marbles, are displayed at the British Museum in London October 16, 2014.)

(2014年10月16日在伦敦大英博物馆展出的帕台农大理石雕,包括许多石制品、碑文和雕塑,也被称为埃尔金大理石雕。)
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Britain is the legitimate owner of the Parthenon marbles, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told a Greek newspaper, rebuffing Greece’s permanent request for the return of the 2,500-year-old sculptures.

英国首相鲍里斯·约翰逊对希腊一家报纸说,英国是帕台农神庙大理石雕像的合法所有者。他拒绝了希腊永久归还这些有2500年历史的雕塑的要求。

Since independence in 1832, Greece has repeatedly called for the repatriation of the treasures - known in Britain as the Elgin Marbles - that British diplomat Lord Elgin removed from the Parthenon temple in Athens in the early 19th century, when Greece was under Ottoman rule.

自1832年独立以来,希腊多次呼吁归还这些宝藏——在英国被称为埃尔金大理石雕塑——这些宝藏是英国外交官埃尔金勋爵在19世纪早期希腊处于奥斯曼帝国统治时期从雅典的帕台农神庙运走的。

But the British Museum in London has refused to return the sculptures, roughly half of a 160-meter (525-foot) frieze which adorned the 5th century BC monument, saying they were acquired by Elgin under a legal contract with the Ottoman Empire and are part of everyone’s “shared heritage”.

但是位于伦敦的大英博物馆拒绝归还这些雕塑,并说它们是埃尔金根据与奥斯曼帝国的法律合同获得的,是所有人“共同遗产”的一部分。

In an interview with Ta Nea newspaper released on Friday, Johnson, a former student of the Classics much given to quoting Latin and Greek, reiterated that the British Museum was the legitimate owner of the marbles.

在周五公布的《塔尼亚报》的采访中,曾是古典文学专业学生,喜欢引用拉丁语和希腊语的约翰逊重申大英博物馆是这些大理石雕的合法所有者。

He said he understood the feelings of many Greeks about the issue but said Britain had a “firm and long-standing” position about the sculptures. “They were acquired legally by Lord Elgin, in line with the laws that were in force at that time,” he said.

他说,他理解许多希腊人对这个问题的看法,但他表示,英国对这些雕塑有着“坚定和长期”的立场。“它们是埃尔金勋爵合法获得的,符合当时的法律,”他说。

Greece’s conservative government has stepped up pressure for a return of the marbles since it took power in 2019, a campaign it has said would be intensified by Britain’s departure from the European unx.

自2019年上台以来,希腊保守党政府加大了要求英国归还大理石雕塑的压力,并称英国退出欧盟将加剧这场运动。

Culture Minister Lina Mendoni, who has previously referred to Elgin as a “serial thief”, said Johnson appeared to be unaware of recent historical evidence showing the former envoy had not acquired the marbles legitimately.

文化部长莉娜· 蒙多莉之前曾说埃尔金是一个“连环窃贼”,她说约翰逊似乎不知道最近的历史证据表明这位前大使并不是合法获得了这些大理石雕。

“For Greece, the British Museum does not have legitimate ownership or possession of the Sculptures,” she said in a statement.

她在一份声明中说:“在希腊看来,大英博物馆没有这些雕塑的合法所有权。”

In 2019, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said he would be willing to lend important artefacts to London in return for putting the marbles on display in Athens in 2021, when Greece marks the 200th anniversary of its independence.

2019年,希腊总理基里亚科斯·米佐塔基斯曾表示,他愿意将重要的文物借给伦敦,以换取2021年在雅典展出这些大理石,届时希腊将庆祝独立200周年。