Professor Andrew Wallace-Hadrill

No, no, no. It punches above its weight, doesn't it? It makes no sense to us that a town of, they say, 4,000 inhabitants. I say that's too many. I can't put them within the walls. I say 3,000 maximum. It could be 2,500. But it really doesn't matter. It's not a big... To us, it's...

not even a town, it's a big village in terms of size, but in terms of public amenities, in terms of how impressive it was. It's way, way up the list. And the truth is, in antiquity, Cities were small by our standards, of course, and they didn't have cities of 10 million. Only one city, Rome, of as many as 1 million. Most cities are in the 5 to 10 million range.

not even a town, it's a big village in terms of size, but in terms of public amenities, in terms of how impressive it was. It's way, way up the list. And the truth is, in antiquity, Cities were small by our standards, of course, and they didn't have cities of 10 million. Only one city, Rome, of as many as 1 million. Most cities are in the 5 to 10 million range.

not even a town, it's a big village in terms of size, but in terms of public amenities, in terms of how impressive it was. It's way, way up the list. And the truth is, in antiquity, Cities were small by our standards, of course, and they didn't have cities of 10 million. Only one city, Rome, of as many as 1 million. Most cities are in the 5 to 10 million range.

So, okay, even for antiquity, Herculaneum's not a big place, but it's a proud place. It's a rich place. It's a prosperous place. It's a place to be.

So, okay, even for antiquity, Herculaneum's not a big place, but it's a proud place. It's a rich place. It's a prosperous place. It's a place to be.

So, okay, even for antiquity, Herculaneum's not a big place, but it's a proud place. It's a rich place. It's a prosperous place. It's a place to be.

And Colchester doesn't do bad in terms of public monuments and so on. No, exactly. When the Romans make a town, it's impressive.

And Colchester doesn't do bad in terms of public monuments and so on. No, exactly. When the Romans make a town, it's impressive.

And Colchester doesn't do bad in terms of public monuments and so on. No, exactly. When the Romans make a town, it's impressive.

Well, of course, we have to assume that we do. Because nowhere else is preserved like Pompeii and Herculaneum are preserved. And so we look at the almost pathetic remains of most Roman cities. And we have to reconstruct what they were like. And we turn to Pompeii and Herculaneum. What if this rose to a few more stories? And of course, Pompeii gives you a model of one story.

Well, of course, we have to assume that we do. Because nowhere else is preserved like Pompeii and Herculaneum are preserved. And so we look at the almost pathetic remains of most Roman cities. And we have to reconstruct what they were like. And we turn to Pompeii and Herculaneum. What if this rose to a few more stories? And of course, Pompeii gives you a model of one story.

Well, of course, we have to assume that we do. Because nowhere else is preserved like Pompeii and Herculaneum are preserved. And so we look at the almost pathetic remains of most Roman cities. And we have to reconstruct what they were like. And we turn to Pompeii and Herculaneum. What if this rose to a few more stories? And of course, Pompeii gives you a model of one story.

You can see up to the top of the walls of the first story in Pompeii. Herculaneum gives you the second floor. So multi-story flats. Yeah, but if you've got an excavation that is as deep as 20 meters, of course, you're getting a great depth. The tallest building is the block of flats on the edge of the site. And there are bits of the third story surviving. So, you know, I've been up there.

You can see up to the top of the walls of the first story in Pompeii. Herculaneum gives you the second floor. So multi-story flats. Yeah, but if you've got an excavation that is as deep as 20 meters, of course, you're getting a great depth. The tallest building is the block of flats on the edge of the site. And there are bits of the third story surviving. So, you know, I've been up there.

You can see up to the top of the walls of the first story in Pompeii. Herculaneum gives you the second floor. So multi-story flats. Yeah, but if you've got an excavation that is as deep as 20 meters, of course, you're getting a great depth. The tallest building is the block of flats on the edge of the site. And there are bits of the third story surviving. So, you know, I've been up there.

I've looked down from a latrine on the third story. And it's an amazing experience. The truth is, I've done the same in Rome. I've stood on a fifth story in Rome, right under the capital line. There is a five-story building. block of flats that has survived so you know it's not impossible but because of the

I've looked down from a latrine on the third story. And it's an amazing experience. The truth is, I've done the same in Rome. I've stood on a fifth story in Rome, right under the capital line. There is a five-story building. block of flats that has survived so you know it's not impossible but because of the

I've looked down from a latrine on the third story. And it's an amazing experience. The truth is, I've done the same in Rome. I've stood on a fifth story in Rome, right under the capital line. There is a five-story building. block of flats that has survived so you know it's not impossible but because of the

nature and the detail of the preservation of these sites, we have to extrapolate from them to understand other cities. I think the danger is turning everywhere else into a Pompeii and a Herculaneum for the bits that are missing. Were Roman cities all following a similar formula? Yes. There are certain components you find again and again. Like the central forum, the main area?