The Lovely Stones Summary

In Christopher Hitchens’ nonfiction article, “The Lovely Stones” (2009), Hitchens asserts that modern museums, such as the Acropolis Museum in London (Bloomsbury), England, have stripped away historic architecture, specifically Greek, thus dismembering the relevance of the ancient epilogue. Hitchens proves his point by using historical references, multiple explanations of Greek architecture, and a tone of disgust and urgency. The author’s purpose is to point out how historical architecture is being destroyed just to be made into a museum exhibit for the public. Hitchens believes that the architecture is a pivotal part in understanding the ancient story of the Greek Empire that preceded future generations. Based on the technical language used throughout the article, Hitchens is writing to an educated audience who has some knowledge in the arts and Greek history.
To begin, the exploitation and dismemberment of ancient architecture is seen as an insult to the historic civilization, which is evident due to Hichens’ use of historical references in

Although, Hitchen then explains that part of the structure was dismembered. For instance,”Except that half of the tale is still in Bloomsbury, in London, having been sold well below cost by Elgin to the British government in 1816 for $2.2 Million in today’s currency to pay off his many debts….”(Hitchens 4). Hitchens doesn’t go into depth about the British acquiring the historical piece, but does mention how the story portrayed in the architecture was destructed. The brief description of this event grasps the reader's attention and instills the idea of how art or architecture can signify an important event that has meaning behind it. So, the dismemberment of historical structures for museums are seen as an insult to the ancient civilization due to Hitchens’ use of historical