Two Gladiators flanking a case containing Roman artefacts
Zoom in on Finds and Annual General Meeting
An RFG Member only seminar and AGM (19.30)
Women Doing Everything, Everywhere, All at once
Lexi Diggins (Archaeologist and Exhibition Curator)
I’m an archaeologist who grew up near the Roman town of Verulamium. I was invited by the team at the Museum to focus on creating an exhibition that told the story of women’s lives at Verulamium.
Probably because I am an archaeologist, I’ve always been intrigued by the women who excavated in the 1930s. I wanted to understand more about what they were doing and who they were working with. The answers I found in the archive were astonishing and turned many of my modern assumptions about patriarchy on their head.
The second part of my exhibition focuses on four women who had strong archaeological links to the Roman town. Their stories are both relatable and remarkable and taught me so much about how women were navigating the physical and cultural landscape 2000 years ago.
I’ll explain how I brought these exhibitions to life using authentic archaeological finds, real voices, ancient musical instruments and life size figures.
Creating Gladiators: A Day at the Roman Games at Colchester Museums
Glynn Davis, (Colchester and Ipswich Museums Service)
This RFG talk will share the exhibition planning, curation and design that went into creating Gladiators: A Day at the Roman Games (Colchester Castle; 15 July 2023 – 14 January 2024). The exhibition aimed to expose the reality of what life would have been like for Roman gladiators living, fighting and dying, for public spectacle, in the arena 2000 years ago. I will focus on the large amount of material from Colchester the Museums’ stored collections, which were supported by specific loans from across England and Wales, including a major loan from the British Museum.
- This event has passed.