The return of fragments of the Parthenon is a recurring theme. Now the Vatican has announced that it intends to return three fragments of the temple to Greece. Negotiations with the British Museum in London are ongoing.
The Vatican returns three fragments of the Parthenon temple to Greece. Pope Francis decided to donate the parts to the Greek Orthodox Archbishop of Athens, Jerome II, the Holy See said. The Parthenon is located at the highest part of the Acropolis and was built in honor of the goddess Athena, who is both the patron goddess and namesake of the Greek capital.
So far, visitors have been able to marvel at the fragments of the famous ancient temple in the Vatican Museums. According to the papal art collection in Rome with the famous Sistine Chapel and millions of visitors every year, it came into possession of the marble pieces in the 19th century. The return of fragments of the Parthenon keeps coming up.
In June, a piece of ornament previously held in the archaeological collection of a former British consul on the Italian island of Sicily returned to Greece. Athens has also been negotiating with the British Museum in London for some time about the return of a Parthenon frieze exhibited there.
