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Not a bridge too far
16 April 2024Legion: Life in the Roman Army
Exhibition provides an epic insight into the ancient world.
Words: Dan Hayes
B ringing together more than 200 objects, many of them in the UK for the first time, the British Museum’s outstanding exhibition provides an unforgettable glimpse into life in the armies of Imperial Rome.
In September 9AD three Roman legions marched into the forests of northern Germany. A few days later they were ambushed, overwhelmed and wiped out, with more than 15,000 soldiers and camp followers losing their lives in a massacre that would send shockwaves through the Roman empire.
That is what makes the breastplate, tucked away towards the back of the British Museum’s current exhibition, so extraordinary. This piece of armour, recently recovered from the site of the Romans’ last stand and restored to remarkably good condition, was worn by one of the men involved. It is highly unlikely its owner survived.
It is just one of numerous exhibits that make Legion: Life in the Roman Army such a remarkable experience. Telling the story of the troops’ experience in varied roles and in different part of the empire, it threads its narrative through the observations of a recruit from Egypt called Claudius Terentianus, who enlisted in the marines before transferring to the more prestigious legions.
There are more than 200 items on display, including the only surviving legionary shield, a dice game discovered in a fort on Hadrian’s Wall and the remains of two cavalrymen who appear to have been ambushed, murdered and hastily buried in a guerrilla attack near Canterbury.
Aside from insights into recruitment, campaigning, garrison life and battle tactics, the exhibition also considers why individuals joined the legions and auxiliary forces and what they stood to gain if they avoided the likely fate of the owner of the recently recovered breastplate.
Richard Abdy, curator of Roman and Iron coins at the museum, said: “This is a really exciting opportunity to present an epic subject on a human scale. Sword and sandals, helmet and shield are all on parade here, as would be expected, but told through often ordinary individuals.
“Every soldier has a story; it’s incredible that these tales are nearly 2,000 years old.”
Legion: Life in the Roman Army is at London’s British Museum until 23 June.
