London Museum to open Roman exhibition in rediscovered Smithfield vaults next spring
The London Museum will stage "Londinium: the making of a Roman city" in Victorian vaults beneath its new Smithfield site, using previously unseen objects from the Bloomberg Collection. The museum opens on 28 November and the exhibition follows in spring.
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The story, neutrally told
Mixed · 2The London Museum will hold an exhibition called Londinium: the making of a Roman city in spring, drawing on previously unseen objects from the Bloomberg Collection of Roman artefacts. Evening StandardN “Previously unseen objects from the Bloomberg Collection of Roman artefacts will be on display” Read at Evening Standard ↗ GB NewsR “showcasing hundreds of artefacts never previously displayed to the public” Read at GB News ↗ Mixed · 2It will be the first exhibition in the museum's rediscovered underground vaults beneath its new Smithfield home; the museum itself opens to the public on 28 November. Evening StandardN “London Museum opens to the public on November 28 and Londinium: the making of a Roman city will open in the spring.” Read at Evening Standard ↗ GB NewsR “The exhibition is housed in Victorian vaults beneath the museum's new Smithfield premises” Read at GB News ↗ Right · 1The objects were excavated in the City of London between 2012 and 2014, ahead of the construction of Bloomberg's European headquarters, according to GB News. GB NewsR “The objects were unearthed in the City of London during a dig carried out between 2012 and 2014 to make way for Bloomberg's European headquarters” Read at GB News ↗
Mixed · 2Items include wax writing tablets, a coin from the reign of the Emperor Nero, a toddler's feeding bottle decorated with the god Bacchus, and what is described as Britain's earliest known Eurasian cockroach eggs, found in a Roman bakery oven. Evening StandardN “Britain’s earliest known example of Eurasion cockroach eggs, discovered in a Roman bakery oven, will also be featured.” Read at Evening Standard ↗ GB NewsR “What sets this particular example apart is its decoration featuring Bacchus” Read at GB News ↗ Right · 1GB News, citing The Times, reports that Professor Alex Mullen of the University of Nottingham, who led much of the research with the Museum of London Archaeology, suggests an "alphabet tablet" may show a recruited soldier or a trader learning to write; another tablet, the "account of Crispus", records a beer sale and delivery. GB NewsR “Professor Alex Mullen, of the University of Nottingham, who has led much of the research alongside the Museum of London Archaeology”“One, known as the "account of Crispus", documents the sale and delivery of beer.” Read at GB News ↗ Mixed · 2The exhibition will cover the first 50 years of Roman London, using spatial soundscapes and dynamic projection; Mullen said the soundscape will include Latin, British Celtic and a little Greek. Evening StandardN “explore the first 50 years of Roman London and the stories behind some of the first Londoners” Read at Evening Standard ↗ GB NewsR ““We're putting in Latin, British Celtic, a little snippet of Greek,”” Read at GB News ↗
Centre · 1It was co-created by design agency Journey, behind War Horse and the London 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony, and by the immersive art centre Lightroom. Evening StandardN “co-created by design agency Journey, which was behind War Horse and the London 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony, as well as the immersive art centre Lightroom” Read at Evening Standard ↗ Mixed · 2The 800-square-metre vaults were rediscovered in 2019 when builders broke through a wall during the decade-long renovation of Smithfield's Victorian General Market; GB News says they are believed to have served as storage units and will be open to the public for the first time. Evening StandardN “The lost vaults were rediscovered in 2019 after builders broke through a wall during a decade-long renovation of Smithfield’s Victorian General Market.” Read at Evening Standard ↗ GB NewsR “It is believed to have served as storage units and will be made accessible to the public for the first time.” Read at GB News ↗ Centre · 1Lead curator Jackie Keily called the collection an "extraordinary discovery" whose waterlogged burial preserved items that would otherwise have been lost, and museum director Sharon Ament said the vaults' potential was clear from the start. Evening StandardN ““The Bloomberg Collection is an extraordinary discovery that has helped us build a picture of life in Roman London like never before.”“They are so specific, so evocative, so mysterious, we saw their potential straight away.” Read at Evening Standard ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left0 outlets
No left outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Centre1 outlet
- Framing
- Institutional announcement: the first exhibition in the museum's rediscovered vaults, led by museum quotes.
- Emphasis
- Vaults' rediscovery, curator and director quotes, co-creators, opening dates.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Does not mention the 2012–14 Bloomberg dig dates or the 'rubbish' angle.
- For example
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“The exhibition, Londinium: the making of a Roman city, will be launched in the spring, just months after the museum opens to the public in November.” — Evening Standard
Right1 outlet
- Framing
- Human-interest angle on ancient everyday rubbish, led by the discarded items and an academic's interpretation.
- Emphasis
- Ordinary objects (feeding bottle, alphabet tablet, beer account), languages in the soundscape.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Omits the 28 November opening date, the vaults' size and 2019 discovery date, and the cockroach eggs.
- Charged language
- “bins”“rubbish”
- For example
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“The everyday rubbish discarded by ancient Londoners will be the centrepiece of a major new exhibition” — GB News
What every side reports
- The exhibition is Londinium: the making of a Roman city, opening in spring at the new London Museum in Smithfield.
- It features Bloomberg Collection objects, including wax tablets, and is housed in rediscovered Victorian vaults.
- Journey, the company behind War Horse, co-created the immersive projections and soundscape.
London Museum organisation
Presents the exhibition as using an extraordinary collection and newly opened vaults to show everyday Roman Londoners' lives.
“So it makes me really rather pleased that the first exhibition inside them will be about the Londoners who created Londinium” — Evening Standard
Left0 articles
No coverage yet.
Centre1 article
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First London Museum exhibit to be held in rediscovered underground Roman vaults
Neutral Straightforward preview centred on the vaults and museum officials' statements.
Right1 article
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GB NewsR ·
Archaeologists empty 2,000-year-old bins to bring Roman London back to life
Sympathetic Charming, curiosity-led piece treating ancient rubbish as a window onto daily Roman life.
- 5 Oct 11:10 First GB NewsR Archaeologists empty 2,000-year-old bins to bring Roman London back to life
- 5 Oct 16:24 +5h 14m Evening StandardN First London Museum exhibit to be held in rediscovered underground Roman vaults
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.