Who destroyed Greece: why Hellas was destroyed for centuries by those who called themselves its heirs

“Athens News” begins a series of publications “Who Destroyed Greece” – about people, wars and eras that caused heavy damage to the heritage of ancient Greece.

We will tell you why Hellas was destroyed for centuries not only by open conquerors, but also by those who called themselves its heirs, defenders, researchers or connoisseurs of art.

From the Roman legions that removed statues and temple treasures after the sack of Corinth, to the Venetian commander Francesco Morosini, whose artillery bombardment blew up the Parthenon, and the British Lord Elgin, under whom marble sculptures were removed and carried away from the Acropolis, everyone had their own excuse.

Some talked about victory. Others are about faith, military necessity, science or the preservation of antiquities. But for temples, statues, reliefs and inscriptions the outcome was often the same: destruction, removal, alteration or disappearance.

In the following materials of the series “Who Destroyed Greece” we will talk in detail about Lucius Mummius of Achaea and the sack of Corinth, Sulla and the siege of Athens, the emperors Theodosius I and Theodosius II, the Frankish rulers of Athens, Morosini, Abbot Michel Fourmont, Lord Elgin and other figures who left traces on the cultural map of Hellas that are still visible today.

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The Romans were one of the first great “connoisseurs” of Greek art.. After the conquest of Greece, they not only subjugated the cities, but began to remove sculptures, bronze, reliefs and temple treasures from them. The winner took not only the land, but also the beauty. Thus, Hellas gradually turned into the cultural storehouse of Rome, and its art into trophies that decorated palaces and squares Eternal City.

Later, the destruction became less noisy, but no less severe. When ancient cults became a thing of the past, many temples lost their former significance. Some were rebuilt, others were dismantled into stone, others were simply left to live out without protection or care.

Monuments are destroyed not only by a hammer blow. Sometimes oblivion kills them – slowly, routinely, almost silently.

When the Acropolis ceased to be a shrine and became a fortress

The medieval and Ottoman eras added new logic to this story: antiquities began to be used not as heritage, but as convenient structures. The Acropolis turned into a fortress, a residence, or a garrison, and the Parthenon became a mosque. What for us today is the pinnacle of world culture, for many rulers it was simply an advantageous height, a well-fortified point and a useful supply of stone.

The worst blow to the Parthenon struck in 1687 by a Venetian military commander Francesco Morosini. During the siege of the Acropolis, his artillery hit a temple where the Ottoman garrison stored gunpowder. The explosion disfigured the Parthenon so that it never returned to its previous appearance.

Sometimes one night is enough to destroy something that has stood for two thousand years.

Scientists, travelers and “saviors”

But this was not the end of Hellas’ troubles. In the 18th century, a new type of destroyer came to Greece – an educated European with a notepad, a ruler and great ambitions. French abbot Michel Fourmont went down in history not only as a collector of inscriptions, but also as a person whose name is associated with the destruction of ancient monuments after he managed to make the necessary copies from them.

This is no longer war, but almost cold surgery on the living body of history.

And at the beginning of the 19th century, the most odious character in this drama appeared – Lord Elgin. Fabricated fake permit to study the Acropolis, his people began not just inspection, but dismantling. Metopes and fragments of the frieze were removed from the Parthenon, one of the caryatids was taken from the Erechtheion, and other ancient parts went to Britain. Thus was born one of the most notorious cultural wounds of modern Greek history: Elgin marbles are still emblematic of the debate about where collecting ends and legalized plunder begins.

In this whole story, one thing is most important: Greece was destroyed not only by the sword. It was destroyed under the guise of faith, war, science, security, restoration and diplomacy. Each new owner explained his actions as necessary.

But for marble this is little consolation…

History has preserved the names of those who took it out, blew it up and dismantled it. Greece was left with voids that must be explained to posterity.

This material opens the cycle about people and eras that dealt heavy blows to the heritage of ancient Greece. In the following publications we will separately talk about the Romans, Morosini, Fourmont, Elgin and those who came to Hellas supposedly with respect, and left, leaving behind an empty place.

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