The Elgin Affair
The True Story of the Greatest Theft in History
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The Elgin Affair
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Narrated by:
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Gildart Jackson
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By:
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Theodore Vrettos
About this listen
This story of the Elgin marbles re-creates in full detail "the greatest art theft in history." Almost 200 years after they were "purchased" from Greece, the finest and most famous marbles of antiquity still remain a burning issue. This compelling, controversial story of the Elgin marbles re-creates in full and colorful detail "the greatest art theft in history", a steamy tale of obsession, intrigue, adultery, and ruin.
As the British ambassador to the Sublime Porte in Constantinople, Lord Elgin encountered in his endeavors some of the most famous names of 19th-century history: Napoleon, Sultan Selim III, Lord Nelson, Lord Byron, and Keats. Drawing on original source material—letters, diaries, official government reports, and memoranda, Vrettos brilliantly brings to life these fascinating stories.
©1977, 2011 Theodore Vrettos (P)2012 Audible, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
Editor reviews
Athens' historic Parthenon has survived burnings, bomb blasts, and careless tampering at the hands of invading armies, but the most substantial damage to this monument of antiquity was visited by a supposed scion of culture and civilization - the infamous British Lord of Elgin. Since the early 19th century, the Elgin Marbles - a fundamental symbol of Greek artistry and culture - have resided not in their intended home - Athens' Acropolis - but the British Museum. Sophisticated performer Gildart Jackson captures the outrage and entitlement of the clashing cultures behind this controversial art heist. Jackson's extensive experience in film and television is evident as he lends a distinct voice to each character in this historic cast, including Lord Byron, John Keats, and Napoleon Bonaparte.
What listeners say about The Elgin Affair
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- A. McLaren
- 18-10-24
Talk about bad luck…
Super bad luck story. Everything goes wrong for Elgin and I mean everything! The narrator is good but his Scottish accent is terrible… moral is No good deed goes unpunished…
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Parissa
- 29-04-21
Extremely interesting & beautifully read
Extremely interesting account of the life of Lord Elgin, ambassador to Constantinople in the early 19th Century, and that of his young wife, both from a historical and human point of view. It is a salutary tale of Elgin’s obsession with transferring the marble friezes of the Parthenon to London, at whatever cost. The opposition to Elgin’s removal of the marbles in the UK, parliament’s resistance to the purchase of the marbles were all information I had never come across. This biography is beautifully read and a very interesting listen.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- T S.
- 04-09-21
Brilliant
Well worth your time! It’s not just about the Elgin marbles but about family, relationships commitment and life choices. Snapshot of real life of the past.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 25-09-23
Very Interesting
It was very interesting and has extended my interest in History. the reader was very good.
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Mary Carnegie
- 10-06-22
First pages all I could manage.
Author knows no history. Doesn’t realise “England” stopped being a sovereign state (ergo capable of beat war) in 1707! (United Kingdom from then till present!) I’m not going to waste my time on a book the writer has taken no care over. The narrator can’t pronounce French words.
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 06-09-22
Terrible narration and badly written book
Stilted, affected narration destroyed this story. But that aside, the book is badly written. Too few dates, or ages of protagonists were included. For example how old were the Elgins when they divorced or died? The book doesn't bother to tell us. There is very little analysis or attempt to explain Elgin's motivation to risk ruining himself financially for the marbles. Was it greed, obsession or both? Certainly he was an arrogant fool and the whole affair was conducted at the expense of others. The book contains lots of unnecessary boring travel details about which hotel the Elgins stayed in on their travels but there is no attempt to flesh out the adulterous love affair or other interesting aspects. The fact his wife lost her children is given one line (how old were they at the time...we are not told) And we never find out if Lucieri is one of the creditors who gets paid.
The story is fundamentally one of imperial Britain's tendencies to exploitation, vandalism, arrogance and self deluded hypocrisy. The marbles were violently hacked from their home in Athens in an arrangement made between one greedy imperialist and another. They should be returned.
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