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    Discover London Through History

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    A bronze neck ring or torc found in the Harper Road burial associated image Hidden London

    Powerful women in late Iron Age London: the Harper Road burial

    Evidence for women’s power in prehistoric London

    Vishnu-statuette-small.jpg Rivers

    Mudlarks: rescuing relics from the river

    How do the ancient artefacts found in the river Thames end up on display?

    Carved head representing a fashionably dressed young woman with a 'wimple' or neck cloth under her chin, associated image Hidden London

    Bioarchaeological evidence for Black women in 14th century London

    What can bones can tell us about Black women in Medieval London?

    Portrait of Emma Hamilton 1791 © The Metropolitan Museum Behind the scenes

    Emma Hamilton’s copy of Haydn’s The Creation

    An in-depth look at Emma Hamilton, the famous regency-era model and actress, through her very own copy of The Creation held in the museum’s library.

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Museum of London
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London Before London

450,000 BC – AD 50

Medieval London

410-1558

Permanent galleries

Roman London

AD 50-410

Discover how Londinium came to life and what daily life was like for Romans in the city 2,000 years ago

The Romans built the city where London now stands, bridging the Thames and creating Londinium. From around AD 50 to 410, this was the largest city in Britannia and a vital international port.

  • Tombstone of Claudia Martina, Roman Britain’s youngest recorded wife.
  • Roman tile with a name scratched into the surface.
  • Carved orange gemstone showing a Roman warship, rowed by four marines.
  • A pile of Roman gold coins
  • View from outside Roman London looking into what was once the fort and later part of the city wall.
  • A tessellated Roman pavement. The design of red, white, yellow, black and green tesserae is surrounded by a plain red border.
  • A model of the first bridge across the River Thames, where London Bridge now stands.
  • A statue from the temple of Mithras showing Mithras plunging his dagger into the neck of a bull.
  • The head and shoulders of a stone statue of a Roman soldier.
  • A stone table showing the first written record to use the word ‘Londoners’.

Not to be missed on your visit

View slideshow

Tombstone of Claudia Martina, Roman Britain’s youngest recorded wife.

Tombstone to Claudia Martina, AD 150-200

At 19, Claudia Martina is Roman Britain’s youngest recorded wife. Her husband spared no expense on her tomb – even though he was a slave working for the local government.

Roman tile with a name scratched into the surface.

Austalis tile, AD 50-410

Working in a local brickyard, Austalis left his name scratched in to one of the bricks. Read what one of his co-workers added afterwards to see what they thought of him!

Carved orange gemstone showing a Roman warship, rowed by four marines.

Carved intaglio jewel, 3rd century AD

This carved gemstone shows a Roman warship, being rowed by four marines. Somehow, this precious object ended up in the river Thames, and was found buried in the foreshore.

A pile of Roman gold coins

Hoard of 43 Roman gold coins dating AD65-147

This hoard of golden coins was buried sometime in the 3rd century, probably to keep it safe from thieves. The owner never retrieved the hoard, and it was discovered in 2000.

View from outside Roman London looking into what was once the fort and later part of the city wall.

View of the wall, AD 120-1900

From the gallery you can view what remains of London’s city wall, a mix of Roman, medieval and Victorian building. 2000 years ago, this was a fort guarding the edge of the city.

A tessellated Roman pavement. The design of red, white, yellow, black and green tesserae is surrounded by a plain red border.

Bucklersbury Mosaic, AD 250

This mosaic caused a sensation when it was discovered in Queen Victoria Street in 1869. Over the three days before it was removed from the ground 50,000 visitors came to see it.

A model of the first bridge across the River Thames, where London Bridge now stands.

Londinium Bridge

This model shows how the Romans built the first bridge across the River Thames, where London Bridge now stands.

A statue from the temple of Mithras showing Mithras plunging his dagger into the neck of a bull.

Temple of Mithras, AD 240-410

The discovery of a Temple to Mithras in 1954 was a London sensation. This men-only mystery cult worshipped in a building on the banks of the Walbrook River for 100 years.

The head and shoulders of a stone statue of a Roman soldier.

Stone figure of a soldier, 1st - 2nd century

This statue represents one of the Roman legionary soldiers who occupied Britain from AD 43. After the Romans departed, it was re-used as building material for a Saxon house.

A stone table showing the first written record to use the word ‘Londoners’.

Londiniensi inscription, AD 160-170

This inscription is the first written record to use the word ‘Londoners’.

Gallery access

The gallery is open during the museum's normal hours:

11.30am - 3.30pm (Mon-Fri) & 10am-6pm (Sat & Sun)

The gallery is on the entrance floor and can be accessed by lift.

Free entry, timed ticket

Roman London also of interest

Enclosed boot from London, c.75-125 AD: 20004

These boots were made for Romans

What can we learn from these important finds?

Find out more

Roman London family walk

Roman London family walk

Walk the streets of old Londinium from the lost fort to the hidden amphitheatre.

Book now

Skull of a man

School workshops

We offer a range of interactive sessions for schools to help students learn about the Romans.

Book a school visit

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Update from the Museum of London

The Museum of London and the Museum of London Docklands will continue to be closed to the public for the time being, but we are hoping to reopen on Wednesday 19 May in line with the Government's roadmap for lifting lockdown restrictions.

The health and wellbeing of our visitors, staff and community is of utmost importance to us and we will continue to closely review the advice from the Government and Public Health England around the COVID-19 situation.

While the museum buildings may be closed, we’re still open online with loads of content to keep you entertained. Check our website or follow us on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter @MuseumOfLondon for all the latest news on when the museum doors will be open once more.

Thank you for your continued support and we look forward to welcoming you back soon!