Elgin’s casts of Parthenon marbles reveal details since lost from statues | Art and design

As the man who removed many of the Parthenon marbles in circumstances that are still disputed, Lord Elgin’s association with the world famous sculptures remains controversial, to say the least.

But the British aristocrat’s work at the site in the early 19th century was not merely acquisitive. As well as taking away about half of the surviving sculptures before eventually selling them to the British Museum, Elgin also employed specialist craftsmen to create detailed plaster casts of many…