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Neil MacGregor

Neil MacGregor Biography

Museum director

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“What does a great empire do when faced with imminent invasion and destruction? It can rearm at home and seek allies abroad; but more cunningly it can revisit its history to forge a myth that will unite the people and carry them through to victory, a myth that will demonstrate to everyone that their country has been specially chosen by history to uphold justice and righteousness.”

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Book:A History of the World in 100 Objects
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“La presencia de la tranquilidad en una obra de arte apunta a una gran civilización interna, puesto que no se puede tener tranquilidad sin reflexión, sin haberse formulado las grandes preguntas sobre el propio lugar en el universo y haber respondido a ellas con un cierto grado de satisfacción. Eso es lo que significa la civilización para mí.”

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Book:A History of the World in 100 Objects
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“Ashoka's political and moral philosophy, as he expressed it in his imperial inscriptions, initiated a tradition of religious tolerance, non-violent debate and a commitment to the idea of happiness which has animated Indian political philosophy ever since. But - and it's a big but - his benevolent empire scarcely outlived him. And that leaves us with the uncomfortable question of whether such high ideals can survive the realities of political power. Nevertheless, this was a ruler who really did change the way that his subjects and their successors thought.”

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Book:A History of the World in 100 Objects
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“El hombre racional no puede dejar de luchar contra la irracionalidad bruta. Esta deshumanización del enemigo lleva a una senda peligrosa, pero constituye un magnífico grito de guerra cuando se libra un conflicto bélico. Si se pretende mantener a raya el caos. dice el mensaje, la razón tendrá que luchar una y otra vez contra la sinrazón.”

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Book:A History of the World in 100 Objects
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“Apparently, if you look at how many numbers we're likely to store in our mobile phone, or how many names we're likely to list on a social networking site, it's rare even for city dwellers to exceed a couple of hundred. Social anthropologists delightedly point out that this is the size of the social group we would have had to handle in a large Stone Age village. According to them, we're all trying to cope with modern big-city life equipped only with a Stone Age social brain. We all struggle with anonymity.”

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Book:A History of the World in 100 Objects
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“It is impossible to exaggerate how powerfully this object would affect any believer kneeling in front of it. The blood drawn by this worthless thorn will save immortal souls, and so nothing earthly can be too precious for it, neither the sapphire it stands on, nor the rock crystal that protects it, nor the ruby and pearls that frame it. This is a sermon in gold and jewels, an aid to contemplation and a source of the deepest comfort.”

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Book:A History of the World in 100 Objects
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“Este concepto bíblico de dominio, de la existencia de un derecho otorgado por la gracia divina a hacer lo que nos plazca con todos los seres vivos, matar o recolectar cualquier cosa para alimentarnos, ha tenido una gran influencia en el modo en que la civilización occidental usa y abusa del mundo natural.”

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Book:Living with the Gods: On Beliefs and Peoples
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