| This is the first of the Elgin Marbles I saw "in the flesh." As I walked through the British Museum, I saw the Duveen Gallery (where the Parthenon sculptures are exhibited) but chose not to go in (saving it for later, I suppose was my reason). Thinking I'd "escaped" viewing the Elgin Marbles, I walked around the corner and smack-dab into this lonely piece. It's a caryatid, which is a structural column sculpted in the form of a person (usually a woman). This particular one was taken from the Erechtheum, located on Athens' Acropolis, by Lord Elgin's agents. I say lonely because, though it's as lovely as anything from the Parthenon, it's stuck in a little room behind the Nereid Monument. In contrast, the rest of the "Elgin Marbles" are on prominent display. |
| A close-up of the Caryatid. |
|
| A view from my hotel window. We stayed at the Thanet Hotel. Expensive, but nice enough. Each room has a private bath, which is relatively rare with hotels like this in London. |
| Another view from my hotel window. |
|
