cleaning of the sculptures began. 15 months later, it was revealed to the Board of Directors that Foreman of Masons Arthur Holcombe had used hammers, chisels, wire brushes and copper tools to clean some pieces of the sculptures, despite the fact that he had received no instruction to do so. It was also later revealed to the Board that Lord Duveen had in fact bribed Holcombe to clean several of the Marbles more drastically in order to make them more showy for his new gallery. The museum held an internal Board of Inquiry which found evidence of dereliction of duty on the parts of Pryce, Holcombe, and Hinks, and all three ceased to work at the museum as a result. In what later proved to be a critical error, the Board decided that no public statement should be made regarding the cleanings. Word, however, leaked to the press, and on March 25, 1939, the Daily Mail published the story, “Elgin Marbles Damaged in Cleaning.” This led to a colossal reaction from the press and general public outrage. Finally, the museum was forced to issue a public statement. It did so in The Times newspaper, acknowledging the “unauthorized methods” of cleaning and ensuring that “to anyone but an expert their effect is imperceptible.” This was evidently at least somewhat true, as art critic T.W. Earp reported later that month in The Daily Telegraph that he found the damage to be decidedly noticeable, pointing out that “this is especially the case in the procession of Athenian Calvary on the north side of the frieze. Removal of patina [the change, mainly in color, of the surface which tends to occur with age] has left their incongruity of stone as bright as though it had been freshly quarried.” The museum responded by pointing out that the calvary of the north frieze were actually among those pieces that they knew for a fact had not been touched.While no one denies that the method of cleaning used and th...
