Discovering Roman Verulamium
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Activity Map Map Activity lock up for safe-keeping? for up lock to impress your visitors? Draw it here. it Draw visitors? your impress to Park Explorer’s Explorer’s Park INSIDE What would you choose to to choose you would What What design would you put on a mosaic mosaic a on put you would design What look similar to things you use at home. at use you things to similar look away precious belongings. precious away Draw the tools and equipment that that equipment and tools the Draw People used these to lock lock to these used People the Roman locks and keys. and locks Roman the visit to the Museum today. Museum the to visit amongst amongst rings key the Spot treasures we discovered on your your on discovered we treasures You can see many of the Roman Roman the of many see can You letters you can see in the case. the in see can you letters the ruins of the town in the 1930s. 1930s. the in town the of ruins the on this tablet using the Roman Roman the using tablet this on a team of archaeologists to dig up up dig to archaeologists of team a Try writing your name or a word word a or name your writing Try Tessa Wheeler and I worked with with worked I and Wheeler Tessa What’s different to a modern-day kitchen? modern-day a to different What’s 2,000 years ago! My name is name My ago! years 2,000 . kitchen Roman the around Look of Verulamium, which stood here here stood which Verulamium, of . tablet wax a Can you give it a label? a it give you Can Welcome to the Roman town town Roman the to Welcome words onto onto words clean and look good! good! look and clean to scratch scratch to helped the Romans keep Romans the helped styli called tiny mystery object mystery tiny his VERULAMIUM metal pens pens metal They used used They O AN ROM lamps could give out? give could lamps patterns. colourful in and writing. and do you think these think you do Romans used for reading reading for used Romans stone or tile arranged arranged tile or stone How much light light much How Find these things that the the that things these Find of small cubes of of cubes small of Discovering designs were made made were designs placed in the nozzle. the in placed (Turn left by the mosaics) the by left (Turn of rich Romans. The different floor different The Romans. rich of olive oil by lighting a wick wick a lighting by oil olive in Verulamium gallery. gallery. Verulamium in ed the houses or villas villas or houses the ed These were used to burn burn to used were These ¥ © ¦§¨ ¥ ¤ dmire the beautiful mosaics mosaics beautiful the dmire A . lamps pottery small the at Peek Wander through the At Home Home At the through Wander Walk along the Colonnade Head for the Central area Look around the Rites and Visit the Making and stop to read Tessa Wheeler’s and look closer at the small Recreation gallery, w ¡ ¢¡ eo £ a Living gallery memorial tablet. Notice how the bronze statues. Can you find can see popular activities and and try building date is written the Roman way, the messenger god Mercury hobbies enjoyed by the Romans. an arch just like the using letters for numbers. and Venus the goddess of love? Which of these activities Roman builders did. Can you work out the year by do you like doing today? Find the building blocks! adding up the Roman numbers? Why do you think Romans listening M 1 2 = 1000 had statues to music centring voussoir MCMXXXVIII piece (say: voo-swar) C = 100 like these? ishing playing X = 10 games going First position the Next build up the V = 5 to the semi-circular support wedge-shaped blocks hunting theatre block called a called voussoirs I = 1 for worship centring piece. around the support. Hint: take away any smaller numbers for decoration put before larger numbers. 3 keystone 4 arch For example, CM is 1000 – 100 = 900. for playing with Enter the Merchants and Markets area to see the large food Position the last block Remove the centring Explore the green gallery Which of these jars called amphorae and learn about the Catuvellauni, called the keystone in piece carefully. Like objects are (say: am-for-eye). the centre to lock the magic — your arch the Iron Age tribe who lived similar to other blocks in place. will support itself! here before the Romans. things you Can you label can see in the these jars with Now take a closer look at a real Roman Can you spot these Roman displays? the foods they window arch. Explore the drawers Iron Age objects? Circle them. contained? on this side of the gallery to ind it. Hunt for the treasure Discover the site of Verulamium’s Forum. discovery spots! This was the busy town square and market place surrounded by open colonnades containing Did you know that hidden from shops and temples to the Roman gods. view under the grass lie the buried The Basilica or town hall and law court remains of Verulamium’s streets ROMAN and buildings, still waiting to be was also here, with ofices for gathering taxes and keeping town records. discovered? Use this map to stand VERULAMIUM Did you spot the on the very spot where some of carved fragments of the town’s beautiful treasures the Basilica inscription were dug up by archaeologists Explorer’s Map inside the Museum? working with me in the 1930s. Verulamium Lake River Ver Tessa Wheeler s you leave the museum today, imagine you are Archaeologist A stepping out into the bustling centre of Verulamium. 1893–1936 This important Roman town stood here for 400 years Heron Look for bumps and Island and covered the whole area you can see and beyond. ditches in the grass Find the London Gate Explore Verulamium Park to see the excavated Verulamium Glebe House marking the remains tions – one of four Basilica and Wildlife huge gateways of the walled remains of the town walls and buildings and inscription Museum of the Roman walls, Garden roads and buildings. town. This gateway let carts discover life long ago in Roman Britain. and pedestrians in and out from Watling Street, the busy Roman road running from Roman Café Sports Town wall London to Chester. Theatre Car park area How many paces wide is the gateway? St Michael’s Playground Venus Church Cricket statue pavillion Shell London This church mosaic Gate was built using Picture the grand some red bricks taken from the town house that Roman town. Verulamium Park Follow the Roman wall was built here with Can you spot made of lint and red brick a sunny courtyard any in the walls? garden. It had over 30 Bluehouse Hill tiles, which once surrounded rooms decorated with the whole of Verulamium to keep the town safe. Visit the Roman Theatre splendid wall paintings and loor mosaics. Stand next to the Roman (separate entrance fee applies), Roman mosaic Roman god town wall and strike a pose! Why do you think Town wall which could seat several thousand this building and Hypocaust mosaic Take a photo and share it spectators in the open air. People was so large? @stalbansmuseums. came to watch plays and mime Examine the Hypocaust shows on stage. The arena was or underloor heating system that also used for religious processions, warmed the rooms of the villa. Hot sports and entertainments such air from a furnace or ire lowed as wrestling and wild beast shows. under the loor mosaics and up Look at the column and imagine into the hollow walls of the rooms. how it might have felt to perform Do you think it would have been on this stage in Roman times. easy to control the temperature? King Harry Lane Design & Illustration Blackbird Publishing.