For Global Museums: British Museum celebrates its 250th

The Director of the British Museum, Neil MacGregor, is a champion of the global museum, a museum that serves as a repository and resource for humankind, rather than any particular people.

In keeping with its mission as a global museum, the British museum is marking its 250th anniversary with lectures and exhibitions that cast light on the Middle East. As this Guardian article indicates, the Museum's Director, Neil MacGregor urges visitors to "look at Gaza in context." MacGregor mentions exhibition objects that document the Israeli-Palestine-Middle East conflict going back to almost 600BC and states that although the museum's role as a diplomatic institution is limited in dealing with a particular situation, "it does allow people to look at issues with the understanding that they are part of long historical processes."

I find the concept of a global museum extremely appealing (heck, that's what OMo is!), as well as the British Museum, its anniversary exhibition theme and Neil MacGregor. Hard to imagine a more appealing museum, more important issue or more inspiring director! I'd just like to point out that MacGregor's rhetoric, in favor of a global museum, also 'happens to be' an apt rebuttal to the case for repatriating the Parthenon Frieze. It's not that I support the counter argument (which is rooted in the problematic notion of nationalism) but I do prefer full disclosure. Perhaps MacGregor should have prefaced his comments with, "I acknowledge that in my service as Director of the British Museum, I will never do or say anything to lose our marbles."