The Top Ten Treasures of the British Museum

[Jeroen Pelgrom]

Salve,<br>
<br>
just saw a program on BBc regarding the top ten of treasures of the British museum. The top ten consisted of:<br>
- Sutton Hoo ship-burial<br>
- Vindolanda Tablets<br>
- Lewis Chessmen<br>
- Snettisham Hoard<br>
- Mildenhall Treasure<br>
- Mold gold cape<br>
- Rillaton Cup<br>
- Hoxne Hoard<br>
- Fishpool Hoard<br>
- Cuerdale Hoard<br>
<br>
The experts claimed the Vindolanda Tablets as the most important treasure of the British museum because these tablets are real history, they tell about the real, ordinairy people.<br>
(BTW - The sutton-hoo was voted by the people as the most important one).<br>
<br>
i fully agree with this. All that gold and silver are mighty impressive but the stories of the ordinairy people are far more interesting. Those brings history really to life. Makes you realize that people then were just people like you and me: inviting people to come to your birthday party, duty rolls, complaining about the terrible roads or prices of the transports. That's real history.<br>
<br>
see also this like:[url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/archaeology/treasure/top_ten.shtml" target="top]www.bbc.co.uk/history/archaeology/treasure/top_ten.shtml[/url]<br>
<br>
<p></p><i>Edited by: <A HREF=http://pub45.ezboard.com/bromanarmytalk.showUserPublicProfile?gid=pelgr003>pelgr003</A> at: 7/16/03 10:36 pm<br></i>

[JRSCline]

There are some who would argue the Elgin Marbles are "the" defining treasure of the BM.<br>
<br>
Personally, I think they're not all that. However, it pleases me on some remote level that the BM have told Greece to "go stick it" every time they demand the Elgins back.<br>
<br>
I particularly liked the Rosetta stone (though it was mobbed by children at the time I was there) and the Battersea Celtic shield.<br>
<br>
It sounds as if the BBC program was skewed towards ethnically British treasures. If I had to pick a British holding, I'd say the Vindolandas too, but they are not very memorable or impressive of their own accord, and that is what Joe Bloggs remembers when he walks out the gate.<br>
<br>
Cheers<br>
Jenny <p></p><i></i>

[Jeroen Pelgrom]

for those of you who want to know more about these Vindolandas, see this link: [url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/romans/vindolanda_01.shtml" target="top]www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/romans/vindolanda_01.shtml[/url]<br>
<br>
<p></p><i></i>

[Anonymous]

Well for a trained eye, a silver cup "talks" to us as much as the Vindolanda tablets do, I think..<br>
With a silver cup, for example, you have the owner talking to us, then the artist that did it, then the merchant that transported it and sold it, then maybe the barbarian that took it..<br>
The Vndolanda tablets in themselves are not interesting. The words they contain are. They could be copîed and the tablets thrown away without great loss.<br>
I wouldn't even think about throwing away one of those silver hoards.. Too much respect for the artists that manufactured those objects.<br>
I'd vote for the Sutton Hoo treasure, out of the list given. For the exotic aspect of it. <p></p><i></i>

[rekirts]

It's been over 30 years since I was at the British Museum and I only remember the Rosetta Stone and the Elgin Marbles. As a youngster, my thoughts about the Elgin Marbles were, "Boy there sure are a lot of bits missing."<br>
<br>
The Vindolanda tablets, of course, were not discovered yet. I'm sure I wouldn't have been impressed then, but probably would feel rather awed now.<br>
<br>
Wendy <p></p><i></i>