The former director of the British Museum has called for sharing the Parthenon Sculptures with Greece and suggested that foreign visitors should pay an entrance fee to view the exhibits in London.
Sir Mark Jones, who took on the role of interim director following the thefts revealed in August 2023, spoke to the Sunday Times about the current state of the museum. “Some of the buildings are in poor condition,” he said, noting that leaks occur in the galleries during heavy rain.
Jones proposed that collaboration rather than conflict is the key to addressing various claims on artifacts. “The way we will benefit from different claims on different objects, rather than disagreeing, is to create partnerships around them, instead of creating conflicts around them,” he explained.
He acknowledged the financial challenges, stating, “This is expensive. Currently, this project is funded entirely by private philanthropy, but in the long term, it would make more sense to use some of the funding from the overseas visitor charge to create a better-funded system of global partnerships.”
“If we ever find a way to create a partnership with the Greeks for the Parthenon Marbles, we will have to find a way to finance it,” Jones added.
Sir Mark, who also previously led the Victoria and Albert Museum, argued that British citizens should not have to pay to visit the British Museum since they already contribute through taxes. However, he pointed out the need for additional funding: “Either a large part of the funding has to be found from taxation, which is difficult as public finances are very strained, or we should sensibly charge tourists.”
“Why is it fairer that all the money comes from the British taxpayer, when in fact visitors from abroad enjoy the benefit equally?” he asked.
Jones succeeded Hartwig Fischer, who resigned in August after it was revealed that 1,500 objects were missing or stolen from the museum’s collection. In March, Nicholas Cullinan, who had been the director of the National Gallery since 2015, was announced as the museum’s new director.
