30 September 2021
Dr Jess Dixon, Head of Classics
The Classics Department started off the new school year with a trip to the British Museum for classicists in Years 11 to Upper Sixth to see the Nero Exhibition. The exhibition chronicles the life and times of the emperor Nero, who reigned AD 54-68, and tries to shine a light on the man, not the tyrant.
We saw statues of Nero both as a young boy and as a powerful man, artefacts showing his close relationship to his mother Agrippina in the early years of his reign (until he went on to kill her…) and graffiti written in praise of Nero in Pompeii. The exhibition also included details about life in Rome in the first century AD, such as chariot racing and gladiator fights. The most exciting part of the exhibition was finding a frieze from Caecilius’ house which shows the earthquake in AD 62 (pictured with l-r Isabella, Claudia, Olivia and Kiera).
It was an excellent trip, enjoyed by all, and the Department looks forward to running more over the year.