Many people have an image of the Romans as soldiers and bloodthirsty spectators from familiarity with such famous Roman landmarks as the Coliseum, scene of gladiatorial contests and martyrdoms, and Hadrian's Wall with its linked forts and thousands of legions.
Yet the Romans occupied Britain for nearly 400 years. They didn't spend all that time beating up on the locals. In fact, after a few hundred years, the locals considered themselves, for the most part, Romans or Romano-Britons. Touring some of the UK's best Roman museums and landmarks brings the legendary Empire down to a more domestic scale. It's hard to think about gladiators when you are admiring the Roman central heating, flushing toilets, mosaic floors and gardens of ordinary merchants, teachers and craftsmen.
Have a wander through Ten Top Landmarks of Roman Britain and sometimes, you can feel like you are meeting the ancestors - or at least the neighbors.
© Ferne Arfin