These elements have no notion of ownership. In human terms colonialism has a parallel the stronger will subjugate the weaker. This is not good but it is rooted in human nature. If it can be done and the reward great, it will be done. Consideration for others remains an individual matter according to conscience. Stolen artwork is almost always looting as spoils of war. Since Man first settled into tribes he was not averse to raiding his neighbour for women, livestock, etc.Stealing artworks is mostly done more for pecuniary benefit than aesthetic preservation, a secondary benefit. Should they be returned? No, they were not safely kept the first time round. Has anything changed for the better to keep them safer? Looted works of art should be publicly exposed, not privately owned, to be able to be admired as the legacy of Mans creative genius.

While the concerns of the article are understandable, art is owned by the whole of humankind. Internationally recognised works of art should not be in private hands, nor they should “belong” to a government or a culture. I am Italian. Museums around the world are chock full of looted or otherwise obtained Italian art. Save the usual nationalistic lunatics, this bothers no one in Italy. Because that people in London or NY can appreciate Italian artworks is a good thing. If anything I would distribute it even more perhaps exchanging it with art from other countries. To believe that artworks should only go back to their original place is parochial. Safety considerations notwithstanding, we can and should surely compensate past wrongdoings but not necessarily by returning only the same artworks. Australian and African museums should have art from all the world, and so Western museums

Returning art stolen by the Nazis isnt repatriating a cultures identity. Its returning to individuals and their families, their personal property (that just happens to be valuable art). The Parthenon sculptures…well, if it was up to me, I would return them to Greece mainly because they are part of a specific ancient monument. The argument that pollution would damage the stones (and pollution is a serious problem for the remaining sculpture on the Parthenon) has been negated by a beautiful museum in Athens to house the stones. Sadly, the issue has become one of pride and greed which has been made more intractable by the involvement of lawyers. For all we know, the British Museum may have been contemplating returning the stones only to find they waited too late. To do so now, might open them up to endless demands-lawsuits by numerous governments around the world. I dont personally believe that I or anyone else alive should pay for the sins of long dead people who may or may not have been related to me. If my great great great great grandfather robbed a bank, should I be expected to repay the debt (with or without interest) to the descendants of those who lost money in the heist? No, that would be insane. If we could remove the greed, pride, guilt and other unhelpful emotions from the issue we would probably find a happy compromise. I think it would be lovely if we returned to Nigeria some or most of the Benin bronzes. Why not have one or two in the British museum to remind the flood of people (from around the world) who visit it every year that the Wests version of African history is pathetically inadequate? The British Museum, regardless of how it came to own its artefacts, offers free of charge, an opportunity to view objects from all over the world, many from places too dangerous or unstable for the average person to visit. The British Museum for all its past sins, has become a cultural world bank. Should we allow foreign governments to rob it? No. Should the museum be allowed to use its discretion to return items without having to endure verbal kicking for the wrongs of some of it’s long dead collectors/contributors? Yes.