Trimontium Trust & Museum
@trimontiumtrust
A unique museum dedicated to Roman & Iron Age Scotland. 🌟Thistle Awards Winner Melrose, Scottish Borders
🏛️📱 The #Romans didn’t have smartphones… but they loved symbols! For #WorldEmojiDay here’s the Roman emoji keyboard: 🦅 Rome ⚔️ Legion 🍷 Feast 🪙 Payment 🐍 Protection From coins & inscriptions to mosaics, artwork & graffiti, Roman visual culture was full of meaning. What emoji would a legionary send?
#WorldSnakeDay For the Romans snakes symbolised healing, protection & renewal. They appeared in household shrines, on jewellery & alongside Asclepius, god of medicine. Long before Rome reached Scotland, serpents also held symbolic meaning in #Celtic traditions, representing transformation & rebirth.
#otd in #AncientRome, the Transvectio equitum took place. This was a parade of young men of the #equestrian class. #EmperorAugustus later combined it with a review to check riders' physical fitness, equipment & character required for military duty. 📷 #Roman youth on horseback. Chris O, CC.
#IronAgeWednesday Edin's Hall Broch in Abbey St Bathans, Scottish Borders, is a rare lowland broch built around 2,000 years ago within the remains of an earlier hillfort. The exact purpose of brochs is widely debated, although they are prominent features of Iron Age Scotland.
What do the Battle of #Teutoburg & a poem about celestial phenomena have in common? The Battle of Teutoburg is the only historical event mentioned in the poem Atronomica, by #Marcus Manilius in the 1st century AD. The #Astronomica is a poem about the celestial phenomena & the zodiac signs.
The Scottish Borders has many places worth visiting. One such place is about a twenty-five-minute car ride from the Trimontium Museum. Located in Carterhaugh is Tamlane’s Well! It is believed to retain enchanted healing properties, and you can visit it today!
The month of July takes its name from Julius Caesar. It was renamed Iulius (July) in 44 BC by the Roman Senate to honor Caesar’s accomplishments. Photo: Alfred von Domaszewski #roman #onthisday #otd #romans #trimontium #rome
#AntoninusPius began his reign #OTD 11 July AD138. He expanded access to drinking water, supported rights for formerly enslaved people, & founded a charity for destitute girls in honour of Faustina. His rule saw the construction of the #Antonine Wall across Scotland’s central belt.
Hadrian was born in Italica, southern Spain. During his reign, he became best known for constructing Hadrian’s Wall, which marked the northern border of Britannia. #roman #onthisday #romans #trimontium #otd Photo: Emperor Hadrian in the Capitol Museum in Rome Credit: Sébastien Bertrand, CC 4.0
#OTD AD455 #Avitus was proclaimed Western #RomanEmperor. Born in #Gaul, he was viewed with suspicion as a 'foreigner' by those in #Rome due to the recent sack of Rome, leading to his deposition in September 456AD, dying shortly afterwards. 📷 Solidus of Avitus, credit: Numismatica Ars Classica, CC
Today, let's travel back in time before the #ironage, back to the Bronze Age in Southern Scotland. Barbed-and-tanged arrowheads can be found across the British Isles, and are a weapon design specific to this ancient time period.
For today's #HillfortsWednesday, let’s take a look at an iconic piece of jewelry found around hillforts and Late Iron Age deposits. This armlet is from National Museums Scotland in particular. For more information about armlets, check out Trimontium Museum’s collection here: zurl.co/GJRLu!
🛡️ #TrimontiumTuesday - 5 Objects from a Roman Soldier’s Kit From cavalry helmets & gladii, scale armour & tools, Trimontium’s discoveries reveal the equipment & stories of the soldiers on Rome’s northern frontier nearly 2,000 years ago. ⚔️ Discover more at our Roman & Iron Age Festival, 1 August!
#InternationalKissingDay! The #Romans identified 3 types of kiss: osculum – a greeting, or one between parents & children basium – between husband & wife savium – a passionate kiss 📷ArchaiOptix, CC BY-SA 4.0 📷Jastrow (2006), Public Domain
🗓️ #OTD AD321 Valentinian I was born at Cibalae (Pannonia). Army officer under Constantius II & Julian, later proclaimed emperor in AD364. Ruled the West with his brother Valens, defending the Rhine & Danube frontiers, & restoring order in Britain after 367–368. 🏛️
🎂 Born #OTD 2 July AD 419, Ravenna: Valentinian III, Western Roman Emperor. Son of Constantius III & Galla Placidia (regent early reign). Ruled 425–455 amid crisis—Aetius, Attila, Vandals. Assassinated AD 455. A long reign in a collapsing West 🏛️ Married to Licinia Eudoxia, daughter of Theodosius II.
🗓️ On 1 July, the Romans marked the anniversary of the Temple of #Felicitas, #goddess of prosperity, success & good fortune. Unlike Fortuna, Felicitas embodied only positive blessings & the flourishing of Rome. 📷 Reverse of a Denarius of Hadrian Synton Hoard @trimontiumtrust #romanfestivals
🗓️ #OnThisDay – 1 July, AD 69 👑 #Vespasian proclaimed Emperor During the Year of the Four Emperors, the legions in Egypt proclaimed Vespasian emperor. He ended the civil war, founded the #Flavian dynasty, and began construction of the Colosseum. 📜 “An emperor ought to die standing.” — Suetonius
Happy July! 🌞Originally called Quintilis it was once the 5th month in the early #Roman calendar. After Julius Caesar’s reforms it became the 7th & was renamed Iulius. It was under Jupiter’s guardianship & featured festivals including the Ludi Apollinares for Apollo & Neptunalia for Neptune. 🏛️⚡
Some of the most colourful finds from #Roman & #IronAge times are made from #glass. At #Trimontium, broken bottles were recycled into glass beads & bangles, & these constitute some of our favourite objects in the collection. Come & see them for yourself at our wonderful museum!
DDelighted to share a Roman Tapestry panel collaboration with #TheGreatTapestryofScotlandAt Trimontium, visitors can add their own stitch to a replica panel & at the Tapestry encounter replica Roman armour. Visit both venues & enjoy 10% off admission. Weave your own stitch into history!
Today is #NationalBeautician'sDay celebrating beauticians, their services. In #AncientRome, beauty was an important aspect of daily life & usually undertaken by specialised slaves valued for their skills. Artefacts associated with beauty & skin care in #AncientRome, Photo credit: Notafly