The woman who asked Britain to return the Parthenon marbles
Melina Mercouri, famous actress turned politician, visited Britain in 1983 as Greek Minister of Culture and made the first official request for the return of the Elgin marbles. The marbles, known now as the Parthenon marbles, were removed in 1801 by Lord Elgin, who was the British Ambassador to Greece at the time. He claimed to be rescuing them from destruction and sold them to the British Museum. Photo: The Greek Minister for Culture, Melina Mercouri, inspects the Elgin Marbles in the British Museum in May 1983