PITY the Roman legionaries flung by the whims of the Emperor to Britannia, where the sky from frequent clouds and rain is dull and hazy', according to Tacitus. 'Legion', an exhibition opening on February 1 at the British Museum, explores the Roman army's life in provinces such as the oft-maligned Britain, about which the poet Florus wrote: 'I don't want to be a Caesar/Stroll about among the Britons... And endure the Scythian winters.' (Hadrian, the Caesar in question, replied tersely he would rather be himself than Florus and 'Stroll about among the taverns/ Lurk about among the cook-shops,/And endure the round fat insects'.)
But if the Romans didn't always love this country, Britain has long loved their legacy and the antiquities that go with it. Although British collectors initially lagged behind those on the Continent, Stuart patricians began closing the gap, amassing with gusto ancient coins (Prince Henry) and classical sculptures (Thomas Howard, 14th Earl of Arundel, whose namesake Marbles are now at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford). Interest in classical and other ancient artefacts boomed with the Grand Tour, continued through the 19th century (leading German classical scholar Adolf Michaelis to write 'no other country in Europe can... boast of such a wealth of Private Collections of antique works of art as England') and endures today, albeit with some changes. Lately, not least as a result of controversies over the way in which pieces were acquired in the past, 'buyers are looking for objects that have strong documented provenance,' explains Claudio Corsi of Christie's. 'It provides greater transparency in the legitimate marketplace for these magnificent objects.'
Denne historien er fra January 03, 2024-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra January 03, 2024-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Happiness in small things
Putting life into perspective and forces of nature in farming
Colour vision
In an eye-baffling arrangement of geometric shapes, a sinister-looking clown and a little girl, Test Card F is one of television’s most enduring images, says Rob Crossan
'Without fever there is no creation'
Three of the top 10 operas performed worldwide are by the emotionally volatile Italian composer Giacomo Puccini, who died a century ago. Henrietta Bredin explains how his colourful life influenced his melodramatic plot lines
The colour revolution
Toxic, dull or fast-fading pigments had long made it tricky for artists to paint verdant scenes, but the 19th century ushered in a viridescent explosion of waterlili
Bullace for you
The distinction between plums, damsons and bullaces is sweetly subtle, boiling down to flavour and aesthetics, but don’t eat the stones, warns John Wright
Lights, camera, action!
Three remarkable country houses, two of which have links to the film industry, the other the setting for a top-class croquet tournament, are anything but ordinary
I was on fire for you, where did you go?
In Iceland, a land with no monks or monkeys, our correspondent attempts to master the art of fishing light’ for Salmo salar, by stroking the creases and dimples of the Midfjardara river like the features of a loved one
Bravery bevond belief
A teenager on his gap year who saved a boy and his father from being savaged by a crocodile is one of a host of heroic acts celebrated in a book to mark the 250th anniversary of the Royal Humane Society, says its author Rupert Uloth
Let's get to the bottom of this
Discovering a well on your property can be viewed as a blessing or a curse, but all's well that ends well, says Deborah Nicholls-Lee, as she examines the benefits of a personal water supply
Sing on, sweet bird
An essential component of our emotional relationship with the landscape, the mellifluous song of a thrush shapes the very foundation of human happiness, notes Mark Cocker, as he takes a closer look at this diverse family of birds