Words on Wednesdays: Beauty

‘A thing of beauty is a joy for ever’

John Keats

Health and beauty were considered important for Romans. They wanted to make themselves look as good as they could. From bathing in the public bathhouse to wearing glamorous jewellery, they put a lot of effort into maintaining their health and beauty.  I chose some interesting objects that are in the Roman Baths collection on the subject of hygiene and jewellery and set up a handling table for visitors by the Great Bath.

Handling Roman objects by the Great Bath

First of all, hygiene. The most popular object I had on the table was the pocket toilet set including ear-scoop, nail-cleaner and tweezers. Romans carried this toilet set on their belt or in a little bag to the bathhouse.

Left to Right: Tweezers, nail cleaner and ear scoop

We can’t talk about Roman beauty without mentioning hairstyles. Roman women had elaborate hairstyles. They copied complicated hairstyles from coins or statues of the empress or important people. Many hairstyles required some hair pins made of bone or metal to keep the hair in place. Some even added hair pieces, and others wore wigs made from real hair. Slaves had to curl and pin the hair of their mistress. On the handling table, there was a bone hair pin and a beautifully preserved wooden comb on our handling table. Visitors loved the 2000 years old comb which was found in the Sacred Spring on our site.

Left to right: bone hair pin and wooden comb

Last but not least is Roman jewellery. Finger-rings, bracelets, earrings, and necklaces were the most common items which completed their outfit. Brooches had a utilitarian function as clothes fasteners, however, we can assume that they also a decoration by looking at various designs of brooches. On our handling table, I had a copper alloy bow-brooch and its replica which helped to imagine what it might have looked like back in Roman times. Children enjoyed bow-brooch making activity using metallic card paper.

Left to right: Bow brooch and replica

Bow brooch craft activity

Although it was a replica, one of my favourite objects was a little ring-key. This key shaped ring was an actual key to lock caskets or strong boxes. Visitors were amazed by this clever solution for security.

Replica ring-key

There are more objects on display at the Roman Baths which I strongly recommend you come to see. I wonder if you can spot the little display of an intricate penannular brooch (circle shaped brooch) near the King’s Bath on your visit.

Seohee
Placement Student

수요일의 한 줄: 로마시대의 아름다움

‘아름다움은 영원한 기쁨이다’-존 키츠의 시 엔디미온(Endymion) 중

건강과 아름다움을 유지하는 것은 로마인들에게 매우 중요했답니다. 그들은 할 수 있는 한 아름답게 자기자신을 가꾸려고 했어요. 대중 목욕탕에서 목욕을 하는 것부터 화려한 장신구를 착용하는 것까지 많은 노력을 기울였어요. 저는 로만 바스 박물관 컬렉션에서 로마시대의 아름다움과 관련된 유물들을 골라 수요일 저녁 Great Bath옆에 방문객들이 직접 만져볼 수 있는 핸들링 테이블을 마련했답니다. 물론 금속으로 된 것들이라 작은 상자 안에 각각 넣어두긴 했지만요.

핸들링 테이블

먼저, 위생과 관련된 유물. 가장 인기가 많았던 유물은 귀이개, 손톱 클리너, 족집게였어요. 로마인들은 이것들을 고리에 연결하여 밸트에 달거나 작은 가방에 넣어 목욕탕에 가곤 했대요.

왼쪽부터 족집게, 손톱 클리너, 귀이개

로마시대의 아름다움에 대해 이야기할 때 빼놓을 수 없는 것이 헤어스타일이예요. 로마시대 여성들은 굉장히 정교한 헤어스타일을 갖고 있었는데요, 동전이나 조각상에서 여제나 귀족 여성들의 헤어스타일이 유행을 선도했다고 해요. 복잡하게 땋고 틀어 올린 헤어스타일을 유지하기 위해서는 많은 헤어핀이 필요했는데, 헤어핀들은 주로 동물의 뼈나 금속으로 만들어졌어요. 아름다운 헤어스타일을 완성하기 위해서 어떤 사람들은 헤어 피스를 붙이기도 했고 가발을 착용하기도 했다고 해요. 부잣집 여주인들은 하녀들에게 자신의 머리카락을 곱슬곱슬하게 만들고 헤어핀을 이용해 스타일을 만들도록 했어요. 수요일의 핸들링 테이블에 우리는 뼈로 만들어진 헤어핀, 그리고 아름답게 보존된 나무 빗을 전시했어요. 방문객들은 여기 로만 바스의 Sacred Spring에서 발견된 2000년된 빗을 굉장히 좋아했답니다.

외쪽부터 뼈 헤어핀, 나무 빗

마지막으로는 로마인들이 사랑했던 장신구입니다. 반지, 팔찌, 귀걸이 그리고 목걸이는 그 시대 사람들의 패션을 완성시켜주었던 가장 흔한 장신구예요. 브로치는 굉장히 느슨한 옷을 입었던 로마인들의 옷을 고정시켜주는 실용적인 기능을 갖고 있었지만, 화려하고 다양한 디자인의 브로치가 있었던 것을 보면 장식적인 역할도 했음을 짐작할 수 있어요. 우리의 핸들링 테이블에는 구리 합금으로 된 활모양의 브로치가 있었어요. 오랜 시간이 지난 금속 브로치라 변색이 되었지만, 우리가 갖고 있는 복제품은 당시에 얼마나 아름답고 반짝이는 브로치였는지 상상할 수 있게 해주었답니다. 어린이 방문객들은 우리가 준비한 활 모양 브로치 만들기 활동을 하며 즐거워했어요.

활 모양 브로치와 복제품

활 모양 브로치 만들기 활동

복제품이기는 하지만, 제가 가장 좋아했던 유물은 열쇠 반지였어요. 열쇠 모양으로 된 이 작은 반지는 실제로 로마인들이 작은 장식함이나 금고를 잠그는 열쇠로 쓰였다고 해요. 우리 테이블을 찾아준 많은 방문객들이 로마인들이 보안을 위해 만든 이 영리한 열쇠 반지를 보고 놀라워했답니다.

열쇠 반지 (복제품)

로만 바스 박물관에는 로마시대의 화려한 문화 유산을 느껴볼 수 있는 많은 유물들이 전시되어 있어요. 바스에 오실 일이 있다면 꼭 한 번 방문하길 추천합니다. 로만 바스에 오시면 King’s Bath 근처 작은 디스플레이 케이스에 아주 정교하고 아름다운 원형의 브로치가 있는데요, 한 번 찾아보시는 건 어떨까요?

Words on Wednesdays: Numismatics

“Don’t think money does everything or you are going to end up doing everything for money”

Voltaire

As part of my numismatic placement at the Roman Baths, I put together a handling table exploring different forms of money over time; this included coinage, bank notes, currency tokens and jettons. I began with the Iron Age and then went on to explore money in the Roman Empire, Anglo-Saxon and Medieval periods, and the 17-19th century. I hoped to illustrate that money has never had a single form; for thousands of years, the label ‘money’ could be ascribed to any object or material with tradable value!

Visitors to the handling table investigate Iron Age coins

One of the most popular items on my handling table was a copper alloy dupondius, issued by Nero in 64-67 AD, which was found in the Sacred Spring at the Baths. The front, or obverse, of the coin depicts the head of Emperor Nero, and his head is surrounded by text which names his many titles. If we compare this coin to an English pound coin we can see that although the names and values of coinage have changed, what is depicted on coins is not too different.

Roman dupondius issued by Nero

To represent the 19th century, I chose to display 19th century bank notes. Like our modern bank notes, this note from 1841 has the statement, “I promise to pay the bearer on demand the sum of £5”, meaning that the person who held this note could take it into the bank which issued the note and exchange it for the equivalent price in gold coin. This £5 note would be equivalent to around £300 in today’s currency!

£5 bank note issued by Bath Old Bank

Tokens were produced throughout the 17-19th century in times of coin shortages where they acted as substitutes for pennies, farthings and shillings. They were used in both a commercial setting, such as in a shop or a warehouse, and in some cases they were used as gambling tokens! Tokens were in frequent use, and the Roman Baths collection holds examples that were used locally in Sydney Gardens, the Pump Room, and even the Crystal Palace Inn around the corner from the museum!

Bath Token from 1811

I really enjoyed talking to visitors about this forgotten form of money, especially when it had such a big impact on our economy. It was an excellent way to exhibit objects that are not permanently on display!

Jessica
British Numismatic Society Student Placement

Words on Wednesdays: Delicious Cakes

“Food is our common ground, a universal experience”

James Beard

In last week's blog I described cooking in the Roman period, but to provide the full experience at my handling table, I also did some Roman cooking!

Putting the finishing touches on my Roman cakes; a sprinkle of nuts and a drizzle of honey

From the bookshelf I pulled ‘The Roman Cookery of Apicius’ (De Re Coquinaria), translated by John Edwards.

Apicius was a Roman man who wrote a recipe book during the first century BC. It is not what we would call a recipe book today, with his recipes giving little to no indication of quantities or cooking time. We can assume his book was meant for the experienced cook who could use their own judgement.

Flicking through the book, many of the recipes didn’t seem so bad, pleasant even; pears cooked with cinnamon and wine, lentil soup, marinated pork chops. But there were some recipes that I wasn’t too keen to try; apples and calf’s brain casserole, liver, chicken and onion hors d’oeuvres.

I settled on the recipe for aliter dulcia (sweets), a rich sweet honey cake topped with nuts. YUM! John Edwards’ book provided a modern adapted recipe which I used to make the cakes. Wine and honey replace the sugars we use to sweeten our cakes and cinnamon and rosemary fill the cake with a burst of flavour.

Rich sweet Roman cakes, fresh from the oven!

Apicius recipe:

Mix pepper, nuts, honey, rue and raisin wine. Cook in milk and pastry. Thicken with a little egg and bake. Pour honey on top, sprinkle with nuts and serve.

Adapted Recipe: 

Rich Sweet Cakes

Ingredients:

2 tsp cinnamon

½ cup almonds (chopped)

½ tsp ground rosemary (rue)

2 cups pastry flour

2 tsp baking powder

¼ cup sweet raisin wine

1 egg

4 Tbsp honey or brown sugar

¾ cup milk

Method:

In a mixing bowl, put cinnamon, chopped almonds and rosemary (rue). Add flour, baking powder and mix. Next, combine sweet wine, well beaten egg, honey and milk. Blend and stir into the dry ingredients. Bake in 375°F (190°C) oven in a greased 9 inch round pan, for 30 minutes. Pour a little honey on top of the finished cake, garnish with nuts and serve.

From De Re Coquinaria (Roman Cookery of Apicius), translated by John Edwards.

Why not have a go at making them yourself?

Imogen Westcott

Collections Placement

Words on Wednesdays: Delicious

“Food is our common ground, a universal experience” 

James Beard

Food is part of our everyday life, sometimes we even plan our days around food, eating it or cooking it! It’s not a surprise that the Romans did too.

My own love of food and cooking was the inspiration for my handling table. I wanted to learn about Roman cooking tools and methods, maybe even try a bit of cooking myself. When I began looking at the objects within the museum’s collection, I was stunned to find that much of the methods and utensils of cooking weren’t too dissimilar to those used today.

Getting up close and personal with the collection, visitors are encouraged to hold objects

The Romans increased the availability and variety of food in Britain, introducing new and exotic ingredients, especially for the wealthier classes. Food scraps found by archaeologists today, such as bones and shells, are evidence of food eaten by the Romans. Fish varieties were eaten widely and used to make garum, a fermented fish sauce used as a salty seasoning in cooking.

Butchery marks on animal bone tell us that people were eating and probably selling meat. The scratches and cuts in the bone require a closer look. A bone will splinter or shatter if broken; we know these marks are butchers marks because of the clean cuts into the bone, which can only be caused by a sharp blade.

Handling animal bone with obvious signs of butchery

Pottery was used throughout the kitchen for cooking, storage and serving. Large ceramic pots were used to cook stews and soups and could also be used to store food. Lighter, smaller cooking vessels, such as pewter or bronze pans were popular with soldiers but could also be used in the home.

Bronze patera found during excavations of the Sacred Spring, on display at the Roman Baths

My favourite object was the mortarium, a bowl-shaped vessel with grit embedded surface used as a grinding and mixing bowl. This ancient mortar and pestle was one of the most important tools in the Roman kitchen. The Romans liked food that was heavily spiced, possibly to hide the taste of old meat, and needed a tool to grind all these spices to a useable powder or paste.

Left: North Gaulish mortarium rim, Right: close up of maker's stamp

This particular mortarium is special because of the maker’s stamp near the spout (see image above). This stamp belongs to Quintus Valerius Veranius, with a date range of 65-100 A.D. His stamps have been found on mortaria in Northern France, western Belgium and Britain. This helps us trace the movement of the maker and their wares from workshop to country, which in turn helps us create a bigger picture of Roman life in Britain.

Imogen Westcott

Collections Placement

Words on Wednesdays: Invisible

“The Roman remains were what they sought: medieval Bath was invisible”

  

Peter Davenport

Medieval Bath Uncovered

As a part of my week of work experience here at the Roman Baths, I was given the opportunity to organise a handling table for the Words on Wednesdays weekly summer event. I have always found medieval England interesting, so I decided to take advantage of the thousands of amazing artefacts here at the Roman Baths and take a closer look into medieval life.

Words on Wednesdays Medieval Handling Table

The focus of my table was the different elements of the home; I incorporated building materials such as floor tiles and window glass, as well as objects which would be found inside the home like pottery and cosmetic items. While the objects I used are more likely to have been found in the possession of someone of a higher status, and the tiles and glass in a cathedral, I wanted to create an idea of what life may have looked like in the medieval period.

A favourite object of mine, and of the visitors to my table, was the King John short cross halfpenny from 1205. The coin is a part of the Wellow Hoard, a group of 16 coins produced in the period 1180-1247. This is a great example to show how halfpennies were created 800 years ago, by simply cutting whole pennies in half!

Cut halfpenny of King John. Left: Obverse, Right: Reverse

Another group of objects that attracted a lot of attention were the 14^th century cathedral floor tiles. These were found in the 1974 excavation of Orange Grove and have detailed designs including a griffin, 3 lions and an abbey. One of the designs particularly I liked was the griffin which symbolised the bravery of a lion combined with the intelligence of an eagle, and would have been a great addition to the floor of a cathedral.

Medieval floor tile. Left: Floor tile, Right: Reconstruction drawing

I greatly enjoyed putting together my table and getting to look at all the wonderful artefacts that the Roman Baths has to offer that aren’t Roman, and cast a light on a much forgotten era of Bath’s history.

Eva
Work Experience Student

Festival of Archaeology: Roman Death and Burial

As part of the Festival of Archaeology the Roman Baths Collections team were in Sydney Gardens exploring the theme of Roman death and burial.

Burials are a major source of information that helps us to understand life in Roman Britain. Burials provide evidence about physique, disease, social organisations and religious beliefs and rituals.

Emily preparing the Death and Burial display at Sydney Gardens

So how can we tell a burial is Roman?

In Roman Britain you were typically buried in one of two ways, either cremation or inhumation. A cremation burial is the burial of cremated remains in an urn or pot and inhumation is the burial of body in a grave or tomb.  

Cremation with grave goods became more widespread following the Roman invasion in 43 AD, but later gave way to inhumation with fewer grave goods, possibly as other religions, such as Christianity and Mithraism grew in popularity.

Roman coarseware jar containing cremated remains, on display at the Roman Baths museum

What is a grave good? 

An object buried with the body, mostly of inorganic material such as pottery, jewellery, weapons and toys. Organic items would have been deposited with the body, but have since decayed. Grave goods can help us date a burial as well as provide insight into the life of the individual. Grave goods often reflected the wealth or status of the individual, or their family.

They were also ritual objects, with pottery at a burial site often being a sign of ritual feasting. Feasts were held as the deceased was buried, or sometimes days after. Food was also left as an offering for the deceased. These practices explain why we find food and beverage vessels at different levels at a burial site. 

Selection of grave goods: Clockwise from top left to right; flagon rim, samian sherd, jar base, rim sherd, iron brooch, commemorative bronze coin of Septimus Severus with funerary pyre depicted on the reverse, selection of hobnails

What would they be buried in?

The first materials to decompose are organic such as wood, food, and clothing. This leaves us without much knowledge of what clothing a person was buried in. Items such as pins, brooches and hobnails are the only remaining clues for a person’s clothing. Pins and brooches were used to hold together a shroud or toga.

Hobnails are common remaining fragments of a Roman shoe. This tells us the individual could have been clothed when they were buried or that the shoes were placed as a symbolic grave good in or outside the coffin. The nails would have been screwed into the sole of the shoe, similar to a modern football boot.

Female skeleton excavated at Batheaston with hobnails found in situ at the soles of the feet

What do you think would survive in a burial today that could tell us about life in 2019?

Imogen Westcott

Placement

British Science Week: A Weighty Subject

To celebrate British Science Week 2019 (8^th – 17^th March) at the Roman Baths, several displays were set up around the museum on the Saturday to showcase some of the scientific aspects of Roman life on this ancient site. I set up a handling table, laid out with a selection of objects not currently on public display, to highlight the various different ways in which the Romans utilised lead.

Lead was used for a whole variety of things in the Roman period, such as slingshot missiles, make-up and anchors. The lead found here at the Roman Baths was mined locally in the Mendip Hills, where there is a large deposit of naturally-occurring ore. This was often combined with tin (from Cornwall) to form an alloy called pewter.

Bowl of a pewter spoon, missing its handle. Discovered in the Temple Precinct.

The majority of the Baths’ 130 curse tablets, all of which were published by R. S. O. Tomlin (Cunliffe 1988), are also composed of this alloy. Curse tablets were a means by which the victim of a crime – usually theft – could vent their anger and express their desire for revenge to be visited on the culprit, by writing a prayer to the goddess Sulis Minerva on the metal and throwing it into the Sacred Spring. 

A curse tablet was made by first melting some lead alloy, then leaving it to set after pouring it out. A thin sheet could then be fashioned out of the cool metal by hammering it, before the message was inscribed on the surface with a stylus.

Curse tablet inscribed with a list of names, originally folded five times.

A few examples were simply left in their original solidified state, resembling a smooth pebble, such as this:

Curse tablet inscribed with a list of names.

Pure lead was used as a sealing agent in more heavy-duty work. The Great Bath is still lined with the original lead sheeting laid down by the Romans to keep it watertight, a fragment of which was removed in the discovery of the Great Bath in 1871.

Lead sheet fragment from the Great Bath - deceptively heavy!

Thanks to its durability, a large quantity of Roman leadwork from the site has survived, allowing us a deeper insight into the Romans’ metallurgical practices.

Jack

Collections Volunteer

Bibliography:

Cunliffe, Barry (editor). The Temple of Sulis Minerva at Bath. Volume 2. The Finds from the Sacred Spring.  Oxford: Oxford University Committee for Archaeology, 1988.

A is for Alphabets

The Sun Lounge has recently become home to some new displays! They are part of a series of changing displays that will explore the weird and wonderful objects in our collection by going through the letters of the alphabet. As the displays move through the various letters of the alphabet, more and more unusual objects will come out of storage and into the cases.

The Alphabets display, currently in the Sun Lounge

The first case, ‘A is for Alphabets’, looks at how different alphabets and writing systems have been used throughout history. Each of the objects shows different writing systems, including Latin, Arabic, Chinese, cuneiform, and hieroglyphs.

Not all of the writing systems displayed here are technically alphabets! Cuneiform, hieroglyphs and Chinese are not ‘true’ alphabets. These were developed earlier and the symbols represent parts of words, or whole words, as opposed to single sounds. Latin and Arabic are the only ‘true’ alphabets displayed as each symbol represents a single sound.

The case shows that writing has been used for similar purposes in different cultures and time periods.  The objects on display include a Roman curse tablet, a number of Chinese coins, a cuneiform tablet and cone, and a bank note. The artefacts broadly fall into 4 categories; trade, religion, organisation, and food and drink. 

Egyptian shabtis

My favourite objects are the two shabtis. These ancient Egyptian figurines represent agricultural workers who would serve the deceased in the afterlife. The hieroglyphs on the front are typically from the Book of the Dead. The Book was made up of spells to help the deceased navigate the underworld.

Alphabets and writing systems give us a fascinating insight into different civilisations throughout time and across the world. I really enjoyed putting together this display. Pop into the Sun Lounge to see this display and keep an eye out for the next installation; the letter B!

Alex

Collections Volunteer

The Games of Sulis

Nowadays, visitors to the Baths enjoy their chance to walk upon the stone trodden by Roman feet two thousand years ago; but did you know that, in the 1960s & ‘70s, there were regular events which gave people an even more intimate taste of ancient culture, allowing them to dine at a full Roman banquet around the baths themselves? 

An invitation to the very first of these, in the shape of a scroll with a wax seal and ribbon and entitled LUDI SULIS I JUNIUS MCMLXI (The Games of Sulis, 1^st June 1961), has recently been acquired by the Roman Baths:

The invitation to the Roman banquet

The invitation sets out full details of the ‘orgy’, from clothing and music to décor and food, interspersed with quotes from poets such as Tibullus and Propertius, and even begins with a specially-composed, three-verse Latin poem, inviting the guests to the feast:

The invitation’s heading, including the Latin invitatory poem

The first two verses imagine the invitee as a weary ploughman or shepherd, enticed to take rest under a tree, sate their thirst and be lulled to sleep. The final verse invites the guest to a rather less tranquil affair, as can be seen by a possible translation:

But if you prefer a ladle of Falernian wine with water, or an beautiful girl to a disgusting sheep, seize the lavish joys of the night with the orgies of Sulis.

Every invitee was required to attend in full Roman attire to make the atmosphere more authentic, the men therefore being given a purple toga on arrival, the women a stola (a long, sleeveless dress). Together with the invitation was a photograph (see below) showing some guests in their outfits. The women’s hair is arranged in Roman style, in accordance with the invitation’s suggestion that they ‘imitated Cypassis’, an ‘expert in ornamenting hair in a thousand fashions’ (ponendis in mille modos perfecta capillis, Ovid Amores II.8).

Guests to Ludi Sulis in their Roman attire of toga or stola

Each item of food in the gustatio (hors d’oeuvres), fercula (roast) and mensa secunda (dessert) was an authentic Roman delicacy. These ranged from tunny fish, snails, honey cakes and stuffed pastry birds to a complete roast pig, which greeted the guests as they arrived to sit on cushions around the Great Bath.

Organisers even took inspiration from Cena Trimalchionis (Trimalchio’s Feast), part of Petronius’ Satyricon (often considered one of the earliest ‘novels’, written in the 1^st century AD), in setting up a ‘table of delicacies’. Guests were advised to decline these, seeing as they included things like nightingales’ tongues, flamingos’ brains and sows’ udders!

The feast was accompanied by music adapted from surviving Greek fragments and performed on lyres and recorders (the double flute or tibia being deemed too unwieldy to play). The after-dinner entertainment was decidedly more modern: guests were serenaded on the terrace by Nero and the Gladiators, a 1960s rock band!

According to a newspaper article from 1990 written about it, the event was organised by Mrs B. Robertson and Mrs V. Crallan to raise money for the Bath Festival. Tickets cost four guineas, and a film crew was even paid to record the event, on the condition that the cameramen must enter into the spirit of things by donning togas too! The event quickly morphed into ‘Roman Rendezvous’ nights, and many people remember being allowed to swim in the Great Bath before dancing in the Pump Room.

Acquisitions come from many different sources, such as donations, purchases or transfers - but it’s always fascinating to receive evidence of the colourful history of the Baths’ use through time.

Jack

Collections Volunteer 

Investigating Keynsham

At the top of the main staircase in Keynsham Library, you will find a new display of objects from the Roman Baths collection. Each object was found in or near Keynsham, some as the result of an archaeological survey underneath the old Keynsham town hall, and others were found by chance.

The variety of glass containers on display are typical of what could be found in a Victorian house

Many of the objects were found beneath where the library now stands. Ceramic jars and glassware give insight into the domestic life of Keynsham inhabitants during the 19^th century, when pharmaceuticals were being mass produced and sold throughout Britain. Particularly beautiful is the glassware, with its array of vibrant colours and interesting shapes.

Alongside these items is a small collection of five metal objects, found by chance by locals and a metal detectorist. Representing Keynsham inhabitants living centuries before the glassware was made; a Roman coin sits apart, struck with the image of Constantius II, the second son of the famous Christian emperor Constantine.

The most striking objects on display are two small gold rings. Known commonly as posy rings, they were given to young women in the 17^th and 18^th centuries to display affection or romantic intention. They are distinguished from other gold rings by the heartfelt inscriptions on the inside band.

One of the posy rings displayed in Keynsham library. The full inscription reads "when this you see remember me"

It’s easy to imagine the wearer cherishing the intimacy of a personalised message that only they could read. The two on display read “A frends [sic] gift” and “When this you see remember me”.

Pop in to see the display next time you’re in Keynsham - it’s a brilliant chance to see the variety of objects we have as part of the Roman Baths collection.

Simon
Collections Placement

Tuesday Times Tables: Propaganda in your Pocket

Roman propaganda is everywhere! From literature to architecture, statues to religious ceremonies, the Romans made sure to impart what they saw as the benefits of living within the empire onto the provinces. Coins are a quick and easy way to spread imagery and messages, as we use money every day, and Roman coins were no different.

                

In the provinces, conquered locals were very unlikely to ever see the emperor, and even people living in Rome itself wouldn’t see him on a daily basis. Having his face on a coin allowed people outside of Rome to recognise the emperor, so he wasn’t just another faceless ruler from another country. It also strengthened the practice of the imperial cult outside of Rome, which was the idea that the ruling emperor and his family were worshipped, but not recognised as formal deities. Generally, people would be more willing to perform sacrifices if they knew who it was for, and coinage greatly helped.

The reverse of the coin was also used for propaganda, showing military or religious imagery, depending on who issued it. For example, coins issued by Vespasian (AD 69-79) and Titus (AD 79-81) bear images linked to the First Jewish Revolt (AD 66-73) and the destruction of Jerusalem (AD 70). These two emperors lead the legions that crushed the Jewish revolt in the province of Judaea demonstrating military strength, and the message seems to be ‘We will crush any rebellion’, possibly to dissuade future revolts.

Vespasian dupondius; reverse showing ‘Judaea’  next to a trophy

                                   Titus sestertius; reverse showing defeated Jewish rebels                              next to a palm tree, IUDAEA CAPTA S.C

Even emperors with no experience in the army used military imagery. The Nero sestertius pictured below depicts him on the reverse with a soldier, galloping on horseback, despite Nero preferring to pursue more artistic activities, like music and literature.

Nero sestertius; reverse showing Nero and a soldier on horseback

On both faces of a coin there is usually writing around the edge, though on some Roman coins this is difficult to read because it has worn away over time. This list of achievements or titles gained during an emperor’s reign tells us a lot about how he wanted to present himself. 

The names ‘Augustus’ and ‘Caesar’ are seen on imperial coins, and became adopted titles for emperors and their heirs. Augustus was Rome’s first emperor, and Julius Caesar his adoptive great-uncle, so the names also provide a link to military heroes who were loved by the people. The religious implication of these names is important too, as Caesar claimed to be descended from Venus, and therefore so did Augustus and all of his heirs.

Military titles are also included like ‘Germanicus’, translating as ‘Conqueror of the Germans’. We see this on Caligula’s coinage, and here it has two meanings; Germanicus was Caligula’s father’s name, but he was also a successful general in Germania. Associating himself with his father’s memory and achievements helped legitimise Caligula’s rule.

Caligula sestertius; reverse showing Caligula’s sisters depicted as the Three Graces, goddesses representing charm, beauty, and creativity

All in all, Roman coinage tells us a lot about how emperors wanted to be viewed and remembered, highlighting military strength and spreading the Roman religion, but also making the emperor seem accessible in the provinces.  This concept can still be seen today on modern coins more than 2,000 years later! Have a look in your pocket and see if you can spot any similarities!

Jess, Roman Society Placement

Tuesday Times Tables: Glorious Roman Glass

Have you ever wondered how glass was made in the Roman period, or what the components of Roman glass are?

Roman double-handled bulbous vase

Glass has three principal constituents: a former, a flux and a stabiliser. In antiquity, silica, in form of sand, acted as the former; soda was used as flux and calcium in form of lime was used as stabiliser. 

The Roman glassworker could vary the colour of the glass by adding specific metal oxides. Different quantities of these colouring agents, that have different chemical compositions, and manipulation of furnace temperatures produced a very wide range of translucent and opaque colours. 

The addition of copper produced a range of blues, greens and red; cobalt was for dark blue; iron was used for brown and black glass; manganese for yellowish or purple glass; and for the colourless or opaque white glass was used antimony.

Roman melon bead made from glass paste

The ingredients were initially heated together to a temperature of about 600 Celsius degrees to remove the impurities and this process, called “fritting”, produced the material known as frit. The best of the frit was then broken up and heated to 1100 Celsius degrees or more to form glass.  

Roman jar with thick zig-zag pattern from neck to shoulders

The three principal processes used to manufacture Roman glass vessels were casting, mould-blowing and free-blowing.

Tall slightly twisted Roman jug with strap handle

The casting was in widespread use in the early years of Roman Empire, but became rare towards the end of first century AD and occurred only occasionally thereafter. In the casting process the glass objects were cast by directing molten glass into a mould where it solidified. This technique created decorative effects by joining together prefabricated component parts, like handles, feet and rims. The most common cast vessel found in Roman Britain is the pillar-moulded bowl.

Modern glassmakers blowing glass

By the time of the Roman invasion of Britain in the reign of the Emperor Claudius in 43 AD, most Roman glass was produced by the blowing method. The invention of glass-blowing completely transformed the glass industry: it was now possible to produce a wide variety of forms more cheaply. 

It consists of an inflation of a gather (a mass of melted glass) onto the end of an iron rod. The glass could be blown in a mould or with the free-blowing method, but in this last case the glassworker had to shape the vessel by rolling the iron rod across a flat stone or a metal surface and by manipulation with tools. When the vessel was ready it was removed from the iron rod and then handles and other parts were added.

Michela Amato

Collections Placement