Hartwig Fischer, the director of the British Museum, is to step down next year after eight years at the helm of one of the country’s flagship cultural institutions.
The German art historian – the first non-British head of the museum since 1866 – said he wanted to focus on the “rescue and preservation of cultural heritage in times of climate crisis, conflict, war, and violence”.
As well as overseeing the British Museum during the Covid pandemic, Fischer has faced growing controversy over one of the institution’s cultural highlights – the Parthenon marbles, also known as the Elgin marbles – amid calls for the ancient sculptures to be returned to Greece.
The 2,500-year-old marbles were taken from the Parthenon temple in Athens from 1801 to 1812, and shipped to England by Thomas Bruce, the 7th Lord Elgin. They were later bought by the government and handed to the British Museum.
The Greek government has frequently demanded their return, but Rishi Sunak has followed his predecessors by vowing to keep the marbles, saying they remain a “huge asset” to the UK.
The museum also responded to separate controversy over corporate funding and sponsorship by ending its partnership with BP. Campaigners hailed the move as a massive victory, after years in which the museum’s Great Court had witnessed environmental protests.
Hartwig was appointed as the museum’s director in 2016 with a brief to develop a masterplan for badly needed renovation of the historic building in central London and for the redisplay of its world-renowned collection.
The masterplan is due to be published in the autumn, to be followed by an international architectural competition. The first phase of the project, the construction of a huge new research and storage facility, will open next year.
Hartwig has also overseen the refurbishment of galleries, including the Sir Joseph Hotung Gallery of China and South Asia, the Mitsubishi Corporation Japanese Galleries, and the Albukhary Foundation Gallery of the Islamic World.
During Hartwig’s tenure, the British Museum has organised grand exhibitions including Ashurbanipal, Manga, Troy, Arctic, Peru, Hieroglyphs, Feminine power, and events on the history of empire, colonialism, cultural heritage, reclamation and migration.
Fischer said: “In 2016, I was called to the British Museum to prepare the essential renovation of a building in need of rejuvenation, a global icon of museum architecture whose complex architectural substance calls for urgent, large-scale intervention.
“The renovation work itself will take several decades, but the mission I was given by the trustees has been accomplished: the foundations of the BM masterplan are now laid. It will serve as the basis for all subsequent work and forms the foundation to innovative concepts for the future display.”
Saying it was time to pass on the leadership, he added: “I am excited about the next phase of my career, moving beyond the institutional framework of a single museum to engage in the rescue and preservation of cultural heritage in times of climate crisis, conflict, war, and violence.”
George Osborne, chair of the British Museum, thanked Hartwig for his “incredible service” and “great achievements”.
He said: “He has been an intellectual tour de force, helping the British Museum present its collection to new audiences in new ways in brilliant exhibitions like Stonehenge and China’s Hidden Century. He has led the dedicated staff of the museum through difficult periods, such as the Covid lockdowns and today’s inflation pressures …
“Above all, he has been a person of integrity, inquiry and industry who has given everything to the British Museum over these years.”
Lucy Frazer, the culture secretary, said Hartwig had provided sterling leadership and left a valuable legacy.
The British Museum holds one the world’s most significant collection of artefacts spanning 2m years of history. It is one of the country’s largest tourist attractions, with 6 million visitors in a normal year.
The museum will begin an international search for its next director in the autumn.
