In this tour we explored ancient Rome, from early Greek settlements in Italy and the Etruscans to the height of the Roman Empire. We admires the statues, tomb paintings, ornaments, tableware, coins and lots and lots of vases that the Romans left behind and from these extrapolated what life was like for Roman citizens and the people in the lands they conquered. We explored the legends of the foundation of Rome and the enduring influence these had. We focussed in on Augustus, the first Roman Emperor, and the artistic heights reached in his reign. This included the iconic objects of the Portland Vase, famously copied by Josiah Wedgwood, and the Warren Cup, with its decoration of gay lovers. From Augustus we met some of the other famous Roman emperors and explored other aspects of Roman life, from mosaics to festivals and games.
We then investigated life in Roman Britain through objects such as the Vindolanda Tablets (the oldest surviving handwritten documents from Britain) and the head of Emperor Hadrian found in the river Thames. Fantastic hoards of Roman treasure have been found in Britain, most famously the Mildenhall Treasure found in 1942 in Suffolk, and we discovered what these tell us about life for the elite in Roman Britain.