Thomas Bruce, 7th
Earl of Elgin and 11th
Earl of Kincardine ( 20 July 1766 -
14 November 1841) was a
Scottish nobleman and diplomat, known primarily for the removal of marble sculptures (also known as the
Elgin Marbles) from the
Parthenon in
Athens
Early life
Elgin was born in Broomhall,
Fife, the second son of
Charles Bruce, 5th Earl of Elgin and his wife
Martha Whyte. He succeeded his older brother
William Robert, the 6th
Earl, in 1771 while he was only five. He entered the army as an ensign in the 3rd
Guards. He was elected as a Scottish
Representative Peer in 1790, remaining one until 1807.
Diplomatic career
In 1791, he was sent as a temporary envoy-extraordinary to
Austria, while
Sir Robert Keith was ill. He was then sent as envoy-extraordinary in
Brussels until the conquest of the
Austrian Netherlands by
France. After spending time in
Britain, he was sent as envoy-extraordinary to
Prussia in 1795. Elgin was appointed as ambassador to
The Porte in December 1798.
On 11 March 1799, shortly before setting off to serve as ambassador at
Constantinople, Elgin married
Mary, daughter and heiress of
William Hamilton Nisbet, of
Dirleton; Elgin finally arrived at Constantinople on
6 November 1799.
Elgin was ambassador to the
Ottoman Empire between 1799 and 1803; he showed considerable skill and energy in fulfilling a difficult mission, the extension of
British influence during the conflict between the Ottoman Empire and France. He departed
Turkey at last on
16 January 1803.
Acting on the advice of
Sir William Hamilton, he procured the services of the
Neapolitan painter, Lusieri, and of several skilful draughtsmen and modellers. These artists were dispatched to Athens in the summer of 1800, and were principally employed in making drawings of the ancient monuments, though very limited facilities were given them by the authorities. About the middle of the summer of 1801, Elgin received (as is said) a firman, from the
Porte which allowed his lordship's agents not only to 'fix scaffolding round the ancient
Temple of the
Idols [the Parthenon], and to mould the ornamental sculpture and visible figures thereon in plaster and gypsum,' but also 'to take away any pieces of stone with old inscriptions or figures thereon.' Due to the loss of the original firman, it isn't sure that the translation is correct.
The actual removal of ancient marbles from Athens formed no part of Elgin's first plan. The collection thus formed by operations at Athens, and by explorations in other parts of
Greece, and now known by the name of the 'Elgin Marbles,' consists of portions of the frieze, metopes, and pedimental sculptures of the Parthenon, as well as of sculptured slabs from the Athenian temple of
Nike Apteros, and of various antiquities from
Attica and other districts of
Hellas.
Part of the Elgin collection was prepared for embarkation for
England in 1803, considerable difficulties having to be encountered at every stage of its transit. Elgin's vessel, the
Mentor, wrecked near Cerigo with its cargo of marbles, and it was not till after the labours of three years, and the expenditure of a large sum of money, that the marbles were successfully recovered by the divers. On Elgin's departure from Turkey in 1803, he withdrew all his artists from Athens with the exception of Lusieri, who remained to direct the excavations which were still carried on, though on a much reduced scale. Additions continued to be made to the Elgin collections, and as late as 1812, eighty fresh cases of antiquities arrived in England.
The removal of about
1/2 of the frieze metopes, frieze and pedimental sculpture was a decision taken on the spot by
Philip Hunt, Elgin's chaplain (and temporary private secretary, i.e. representative, in Athens), who persuaded the voivode (governor of Athens) to interpret the terms of the firman very broadly.
Lord Elgin bribed local Ottoman authorities into permitting the removal of about half of the Parthenon frieze, fifteen metopes, and seventeen pedimental fragments, in addition to a caryatid and a column from the
Erechtheion. He used these antiquities to decorate his mansion in
Scotland and then later sold them to the
British Museum in an attempt to repay his escalating debt.
On the recommendation of a parliamentary committee, which also vindicated Elgin's conduct, the "
Marbles" were bought by
Great Britain in 1816 for £35,
000, considerably below their cost to Elgin (estimated at £75,000), and deposited in the British Museum, where they remain.
Later career
- published: 01 Mar 2016
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