EyeOpener Gallery Tours: Ancient Rome at The British Museum

The objects in Room 70 illustrate the rise of Rome from a small town to an imperial capital that controlled the Mediterranean basin and north-western Europe. The exhibition covers a period of approximately 1,000 years from Rome's legendary foundation in 753 BC, to AD 324, when the emperor Constantine founded his new, Christian capital at Constantinople (Istanbul). Objects on display come from all over the empire. They range from stone and metal sculptures of emperors and gods to jewellery, silverware pottery and glass, including the famous cameo glass Portland Vase.