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14,000 Roman finds donated to the London Museum
The London Museum has been gifted more than 14,000 Roman artefacts and a £20 million donation by Bloomberg Philanthropies, as the museum continues transforming historic market buildings at Smithfield into its new home.
The collection was excavated by MOLA archaeologists between 2012 and 2014, during the construction of Bloomberg’s European headquarters in the City of London. These investigations revealed a wealth of finds, including over 400 fragments of wooden writing tablets (see CA 280 and 317), and the site was also home to London’s Temple of Mithras, whose reconstructed remains have, since 2017, been housed in a free public visitor attraction called London Mithraeum | Bloomberg SPACE (CA 334).
Many more artefacts from these excavations will be on show in the near future, as the London Museum plans to display some of the Bloomberg Collection in subterranean galleries situated at Roman street-level as part of its Smithfield redesign. Permanent galleries in the Victorian General Market are due to open next year, while the 1960s Poultry Market, which will house temporary exhibitions, collection stores, and a learning centre, is set to open in 2028. London Museum Docklands remains open; see here for more on its new exhibition, Secrets of the Thames: Mudlarking London’s lost treasures.
Image: © London Museum
Romans return to York
Gladiators, Classical deities, and centurions are set to throng the streets of York later this month in a two-week festival celebrating the city’s Roman past.
Organised by York Museums Trust, in partnership with York Minster, York Archaeology, the University of York, and York Civic Trust, the Eboracum Festival will feature a diverse programme of events including a legionary parade, a symposium highlighting current archaeological research relating to Roman York, and a lecture by Professor Mary Beard, as well as a host of free, family-friendly activities. There will also be living history displays, artillery demonstrations, and online and in-person learning resources for local schools.
School Week runs from 19-23 May, and the Family Festival will be from 24-31 May. See http://www.yorkshiremuseum.org.uk/roman-2025 for more details.
Seeking sanctuary
During the medieval period, fugitives from the law could claim a 37-day respite within Durham Cathedral by grasping the bronze Sanctuary Ring on the building’s North Door. While the practice of claiming sanctuary was ultimately abolished by James I, the distinctive ‘Hellmouth’ ring remained a striking feature of the Cathedral for centuries, until the fragile artefact was replaced with a replica in 1980.
Sanctuary!, an exhibition currently running in the Cathedral Museum, explores the history of religious spaces being used as legal refuges, with a particular focus on Durham’s traditions, illustrated with historical documents and artworks, moulds used to create the replica ring, and commemorative items celebrating the original. The Sanctuary Ring itself is on permanent display in the Cathedral’s Great Kitchen, which also houses the treasures of St Cuthbert.
Sanctuary! closes on 29 June; see http://www.durhamcathedral.co.uk/events/sanctuary-durham-cathedral-museum-exhibition for more details.
New exhibitions
The World of King James VI and I
National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh
Until 14 September 2025
http://www.nationalgalleries.org/exhibition/world-king-james-vi-and-i
Triumph & Tragedy: Swansea VE 80
Swansea Museum
Until 15 November 2025
http://www.swanseamuseum.co.uk/whats-on/exhibitions
Curious Cures: medicine in the medieval world
Cambridge University Library
Until 6 December 2025
http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/exhibitioncuriouscures
Words on the Wave: Ireland and St Gallen in early medieval Europe
National Museum of Ireland, Dublin
30 May-24 October 2025
http://www.museum.ie/en-IE/Museums/Archaeology/Exhibitions/Words-on-the-Wave-Ireland-and-St-Gallen-in-Early-M
Last chance to see
Resurrecting Ancient Egypt: a monumental Yorkshire journey
Champney Treasure House, Beverley
Until 10 May 2025
http://www.eastridingmuseums.co.uk/whats-on/events
Demon, Mother, Maker of Kings
Ashmolean Museum, Oxford
Until 15 June 2025
http://www.ashmolean.org/exhibition/demon-mother-maker-of-kings-display
