Category: Empire

Empire

Of Gods, Dust, and the Limits of Imperial Curatorship

BY DOMINIC WIGHTMAN I have never much liked the Elgin Marbles debate. Not because it is unimportant, but because it is the wrong battlefield. It is a quarrel about beauty, about national prestige, about who paid for the boat. Lord Elgin, whatever his faults, did not tear the pediments from the Parthenon while holding a gun to Athena’s head. He took them with a dodgy permit from an … Continue reading Of Gods, Dust, and the Limits of Imperial Curatorship

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Empire

The Glory that was Britain

BY STEWART SLATER The two most frequent events in public life are Keir Starmer U-turning on one of his “core” beliefs, and the chattering classes frothing over Britain’s imperial legacy. And here we are again. The former Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, last week opined that Australia’s colonisation by Britain was the “luckiest thing” ever to happen to the country, and the outrage train has … Continue reading The Glory that was Britain

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