Ancient Greek Statue at British Museum Targeted in Recent Fossil Fuel Protest

A couple of days after the liquid ban by London's National Gallery, protestors found a way to send their messages. This time, using an ancient Greek statue.

Just Stop Oil placed an orange high-vis jacket on the British Museum's statue of the goddess Demeter, alongside a speech bubble that read, "just stop famine."

According to Art Newspaper, luckily, the statue, which dates back to around 350-330 BC was not damaged. The British Museum earlier remarked that they respect the right to peaceful protest, but the group can only do it without putting staff, visitors, and all museum collections at risk. In this case, a museum spokesperson noted that while no damages were recorded, the protest breached visitor guidelines, which can also be considered a risk to all historical objects in the area.

Also Read: Vincent Van Gogh's 1888 'Sunflowers' Art Vandalists to Receive Lengthy Jail Time

Just Stop Oil Protests in Museums

The environmental group has been consistent with their Museum targets, but protestors defend that it's their only way to bring attention to their cause, which is to end coal, gas, and oil extraction by 2030. 

Besides targeting the British Museums, with two of its members already receiving time in jail per Design Times, Just Stop Oil also sends warnings to countries with excessive fossil fuel usage, with a reference to an open letter from 44 experts. This was a caution against the potential collapse of AMOC, or Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, that warms Northern Europe.

Just Stop Oil stated that disruption of AMOC could devastate the agricultural industry of Europe, and therefore, will threaten food security. The crisis already impacted farming in England and has triggered droughts in African nations. 

Protesters underlined that wealthy nations are not immune to these threats.

Related Article: London's National Gallery Enforces Liquid Ban Due to Recent Climate Protest Attacks on Artworks