Museums are for where you learn about stuff that happened a long time ago and it gets explained. They're educational institutions for understanding the past, generally, or for appreciating art. Not most museum goers tend to be relatively well off. There's a little bit of an illusion there that it's for the people writ large.
Should the British Museum return the Elgin Marbles, taken from the Parthenon in Athens about 200 years ago? What should be the purpose of museums, education or social justice? Listen as Tiffany Jenkins, author of Keeping Their Marbles, discusses these questions and more with EconTalk host Russ Roberts.