23 April 2024
On Friday 19 April, classics students in Years 9 to Upper Sixth, accompanied by Mrs Manktelow and Dr Dixon, explored the British Museum’s exhibition Legion: Life in the Roman Army, which included the only surviving Roman army shield and other incredibly rare artefacts, some of which even Head of Classics Dr Dixon hadn’t seen before.
Anisia G, Upper Sixth
The Legion exhibition proved a fascinating experience for all of us. Guided by the story of a real Roman soldier, Claudius Terentianus, we saw all sorts of artefacts, from coins and amazingly preserved paintings of a husband and wife discovered in Egypt to armour made of crocodile leather. There was also the opportunity to measure ourselves to see if we could have joined the Roman army. Most of us didn’t qualify, being under 172cm tall, however, we learnt we were all strong enough to have carried the average soldier’s pack. Our trip was eye-opening to the harsh realities of life as a Roman soldier across the Empire and the way society was organised in this period. We came away with more knowledge of the ancient world, which will help us in our future studies.
