I. Build the Colosseum, as a ruin
Rome was not built in a day, and this colossal LEGO set, composed of 9036 pieces will take you some time to construct! As any Rome expert would observe, there are many shortcomings to this model; it doesn’t have accurate capitals (a details that LEGO should have included in our opinion), and there are a few missing portions of the top cornice that make it look more broken than it is in reality. Be that as it may, so many details are spot on, from the the reconstructed hypogeum floor to the elements of the the third tier and 19C buttresses. It’s sure to be a pleaser for the kids and adult Rome fanatics.
II. Watch ancient Rome – re-enacted
The latest iteration to hit the small screen is Netflix’s The Barbarians, telling the story of Arminius, the German nobleman raised as a Roman, who then betrayed the state. He tricked the Roman general Varus and caused the slaughter of his three Roman legions at the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest. The surprise loss of these legions forced Augustus to forever curb his German conquest ambitions. The reviews have been mostly thumbs down, and you might just want to re-watch Gladiator or track down Kubrick’s Spartacus.
III. Read Rome
One can’t say enough about Caroline Lawrence’s ongoing mystery series on ancient Rome, great for young teens. For the adults, it’s time to tackle the hard-hitting, Alaric the Goth by Doug Boin for an insightful narrative that will keep you rethinking what it meant to be Roman and a non-Roman in the fifth century. Doug will join us for a podcast later this fall.
Buying these books via the links above will direct you to Amazon Smile, Amazon’s program for non-profits where approved organisations receive a small donation from any sales, at no extra cost from you. Be sure to select The American Institute for Roman Culture as your chosen beneficiary when prompted!
IV. Keep up with Ancient Rome Live
We are rolling out a lot of content November and December; stay in touch on the live seminars. You can also join Darius on November 25th for not one but two online seminars – the first covering the mega-temples of Ancient Rome (register here) and the second covering Roman Mythology – register here.
One year after relaunching Ancient Rome Live, here are some of the things we are proud to have achieved:
- We have grown to over 180 detailed entries, across 15 categories spanning a variety of themes and including an easy to use table of contents
- Expanded to featured expert contributors with in-depth articles
- Partnered with major institutions and outlets such Museo Nazionale Romano, St. Stephen’s School in Rome and Religion for Breakfast
- We were one of the first organizations to offer weekly open and free-to-access online seminars with an expert during the start of the pandemic
- Almost tripled our website visits and social media engagement
Amazing experiences are just down the road including added collaboration with the new director of the Museo Nazionale Romano, with drone filming this month at Museo delle Terme, Darius’ interview for CBS news about the Torlonia Marble Collection, and more!
V. Become a donor or recurring donor
We are creating donor categories. If you contribute at least $10/ month you will join our new exclusive ARL virtual walks for donors in Rome throughout the year. We just hosted our first one last week; they are then available via private links. Especially during the holidays it’s a great opportunity to enjoy Rome and immerse the whole family in Ancient Rome and history!
