Petition posted on change.org calls on the British Museum to stop misrepresentation of Armenian Armenian Heritage as “Ancient Turkey.” The full text of the petition is provided below:
“The British Museum is misinforming visitors about the artifacts found within room 54, claiming they originated from Ancient Turkey and Ancient Anatolia. This is absolutely ridiculous and beyond inaccurate because there is no such thing as Ancient Turkey or Ancient Anatolia! This is a discrimination of Armenian heritage and shall not be tolerated. They refer to artifacts dated from 5500-300 BC from Kingdom of Ararat, known as “Urartu”, present day Armenia, as “eastern Turkey.”
They are trying to validate their point by stating that “most visitors use modern geographical references to decide which parts of the collection they wish to see.” As an educational institution they should be educating their visitors about the origins of the art and the culture it was created by, not manipulating them to “decide which parts of the museum they wish to see.”
Other museums around the world, such as the Metropolitan Museum, acknowledge and respect the Armenian culture by properly naming their collections. Why is the British Museum trying to change history by giving the Ottoman Empire credit for art they never created? By deceiving visitors the British Museum is losing credibility as an institution that conserves historical importance.”
The petition has been signed by 6,387; 1,113 signatures are needed.
