Beschreibung:

Elgin Marbles.- House of Commons. Report from the Select Committee on the Earl of Elgin's Collection of Sculptured Marbles, first edition, modern half morocco, 25th March 1816; another copy, first 8vo edition, foxing, contemporary half calf, spine gilt in compartments with Greek urn motifs and red roan label, rubbed, upper joint split, spine ends worn, 1816 § Act (An) to vest the Elgin Collection of ancient Marbles and Sculpture in the Trustees of the British Museum for the Use of the Public, 3pp., browned, disbound, 1st July 1816 § [Bruce (Thomas, 7th Earl of Elgin)] Memorandum on the Subject of the Earl of Elgin's Pursuits of Greece, second edition, half-title, engraved frontispiece (foxed), bound with 3 other pamphlets concerning Elgin and Rev. John Tweddell, some spotting, bookplate of John Temple, contemporary calf, rubbed, rebacked preserving old gilt spine with green roan label, 1815 § Ellis (Sir Henry) The Elgin and Phigaleian Marbles...in the British Museum, 2 vol., illustrations, original cloth, spines gilt and faded, 1846 § Smith (A.H.) Lord Elgin and his Collection, illustrations, original cloth, spine faded, 1916, with several relevant articles, newspaper cuttings etc. loosely inserted, some a little rubbed; and another on Elgin and the marbles, v.s. (8) ⁂ Interesting group of items relating to Lord Elgin and his acquisition of the marbles from the Acropolis in Athens, now in the British Museum. Although he obtained permission from the Turkish authorities (Greece was under the rule of the Ottoman Empire at that time), and at his own expense, there was a public outcry in Britain at the removal of the sculptures, a dispute which is still ongoing. Having spent between £62,000 and £74,000 he suggested that the Government should buy the collection for the nation, who offered £30,000. A Select Committee was formed to assess the situation and in July 1816 an Act was passed to complete the sale for their recommended price of £35,000. "[Elgin] left England as ambassador to Constantinople in 1799 with everything a young man could desire: personal success in the army and politics; a pretty wife; a considerable fortune; the prospect of a great diplomatic career, and good looks into the bargain. When he came home six years later his wife had left him for another man; his career was in ruins; he had run up enormous debts; disease had ravaged his countenance - but he was owner of the finest collection of classical antiquities that any man in the British Isles had ever got together." The English as Collectors, p.155