The bow from Aquileia has been enjoyed here in recent weeks. Understandable that this detail is selected as it is exquisite, but the whole panel is wonderful, as are the vine leaves. #MosaicMonday #AncientBlueSky 🏺 📷2012

An amazing piece of beautiful, delicate Roman glass (C3rd AD), incongruously decorated with the slaughter of the arena. We see a retiarius, Pulcher (‘Pretty Boy’) fighting a secutor, Auriga (‘Charioteer’). The other side shows a leopard in a venatio, or wild beast hunt 🏛️📷 Trier’s Landesmuseum

For #MosaicMonday on #WorldBearDay, the wonderfully shaggy specimen in the Orpheus mosaic from Lyrbe in Turkey, now in the excellent Antalya Archaeological Museum. #AncientBlueSky 🏺 (Thanks @romanpalace.bsky.social for highlighting this special ursine day.)

Delightful Egyptian #hedgehog. 🥰🦔🥰

Adorable #hedgehog, with thanks to @arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social. 🦔🥰

On this #MosaicMonday, these marine animals from Bath seem happy enough, especially the grinning dolphin, but they are all missing their tails. Did the disembodied tail at upper left once belong to the nearby sea horse? 1/2 #AncientBlueSky 🏺

I never tire of the classic view of the Roman Baths in Bath, looking especially gorgeous in sunshine today. #RomanSiteSaturday

Early for #SundaySheep, some fabulous Herdwicks. (Also some great photos in the comments!) Impressed they all looked at the camera ...

Adorable #Hedgehog! (An old friend in the BM and very cute.)

An early entry for #SundaySheep, even if we have to look closely. A bonus is that the breed is identified in the comments. 🐑🐑🐑

#MonochromeMonday: “Common #Porcupine = Crested Porcupine (Hystrix cristata) Plate 122 by Charles Heath in George Shaw’s _General zoology, or Systematic natural history_ Vol II Pt 1 (London, 1801) www.flickr.com/photos/biodi... #SciArt

A lovely entry for #SundaySheep.

On #MosaicMonday over the last few weeks, I've been paying tribute to the wonderful animals from the Withington Orpheus mosaic as depicted in Lysons's engravings. It was a great thrill to see the originals again last week, now displayed in the excellent Corinium Museum. 1/2 #AncientBlueSky 🏺

Some useful and encouraging thoughts here for those of us who write. (With thanks to @mappadan.bsky.social for reposting it.)

For #StandingStoneSunday, the King Stone at Rollright in glorious sunshine a few days ago, just on the opposite side of the road from the stone circle.

For #AdoorableThursday, the famous and rather lovely north porch door at St Edward's Church, Stow-on-the-Wold, which might - or might not - have inspired Tolkien.

The life of the mole BL Royal MS 12 F XIII; 'the Rochester Bestiary'; 13th century; f.44v

#Hedgehog!

Bonus post no. 2 for this #MosaicMonday: a new book on mosaics is always exciting, and this one by Steve Cosh - which is about to be published - should be illustrated with lots of lovely pictures. Looking forward to getting my copy soon! 1/2

Bonus post no. 1 for this #MosaicMonday: FREE online symposium on mosaics, this Saturday 7 March, 13.50-17.30 UK time: Aquileia! Hammam-Lif!! Scarborough!!! ALL WELCOME 1/2

For this #MosaicMonday, the adorably perky boar from the Withington Orpheus mosaic. The original can now be seen in @coriniummuseum.bsky.social. 🐗😍

An early entry for #MosaicMonday. What a lovely city wall mosaic with detailed towers and gates! @romanpalace.bsky.social - how does this compare/contrast with yours?

A 'golden top-coat' is intriguing. (Perhaps @chapps.bsky.social knows of this?)

For this #MosaicMonday, continuing the homage to the Withington Orpheus mosaic. Some of the animals are now excitingly on display @coriniummuseum.bsky.social but this delightful bull remains in the BM's store. 1/2

A special #MosaicMonday announcement – Save the Date - Free ASPROM Symposium, Saturday 7 March 2026, 13.50-17.30 (UK time) to be held on Zoom. Speakers on mosaics in Aquileia and Tunisia, plus Coralie Turpin and Jeremy Deller on the Roman-inspired mosaic on Marine Drive in Scarborough. 1/2

An early entry for #MosaicMonday. With unicorn! 🦄 🥰

Not a typical entry for #SundaySheep, but a gorgeous depiction.

Early for #SundaySheep but too good to miss! (All looking at the camera, too ...)

1. In May I took part in the 4𝘵𝘩 𝘕𝘦𝘢 𝘗𝘢𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘴 𝘊𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘶𝘮 organised by Warsaw and Jagiellonian Universities I presented 𝗗𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘆𝘀𝘂𝘀 𝗡𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗔𝗶𝗼𝗻. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝗮𝗶𝗰 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝘁 𝗣𝗮𝗽𝗵𝗼𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 Hence it's a #MosaicMonday, I go on: ▶️ tinyurl.com/65zjnxrv

Mole! 🤩😍

For this #MosaicMonday, continuing the homage to the Withington Orpheus mosaic. Some of the animals are now excitingly on display @coriniummuseum.bsky.social, including this colourful leopard who is among those recently let out from the BM's store. 1/2

#MosaicMonday - Mosaic fragment with a representation of Tyche, the guardian goddess of the city of Scythopolis (Beit She'an). She is wearing the mural crown (corona muralis) and carrying a cornucopia filled with fruits. Israel Museum, Jerusalem.

An undeniably emotional experience seeing the other half of the ‘peacock room’ in Oplontis being excavated and meeting their counterparts: the two peahens that graced the facing wall. What a delightfully playful idea by the artist. Compliments to my colleagues, excavators & conservators. Spectacular

📰 The identification of a unique board game from the Roman Netherlands has big implications for our understanding of ancient games 🏺 #AntiquityResearch #ArchaeologyNews via @labrujulaverde.bsky.social www.labrujulaverde.com/en/2026/02/a...

We often have heartwarming hippos to enjoy here courtesy of @alisonfisk.bsky.social, but look what's been shared in one of the comments! 😍🦛🥰🦛😍🐹

How exciting - I have always wanted to see these altars, the one featuring Sol is particularly amazing! www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Some of us who follow #MosaicMonday were at the excellent Project Orpheus conference, either in person or online, held on Saturday @coriniummuseum.bsky.social, where the newly released Withington animals are on display. Here's the bouncy bear before lifting - now reunited with his friends 😍. 1/2

#MosaicMonday The lovely Horae (The Goddesses of the Seasons & Order: Eunomia, Eirene & Dike), in the centre of the Horae & the Seasons mosaic; now on display in the rather fine Archaeological Museum of #Kissamos, #Crete. 1/2

Reposting for #SundaySheep. (Stones + Sheep = 🥰)

Opening today: Religion in Verulamium: Tolerance and Fusion. This new exhibition, using objects and images from Verulamium and beyond, asks how Roman, Celtic and global beliefs blended — and whether all religions were tolerated equally. On until 26 April.

Samian ware bowl (fragment) Found at site of Segedunum Roman Fort, Wallsend, Newcastle. The bowl is decorated with a man on horseback and a bear. The fort stood at the end of the extension to Hadrian’s Wall. #FindsFriday #Roman

Great expressions!

To celebrate #NationalHedgehogDay, this illustration of two playful hedgehogs is from a Bestiary - a medieval book of beasts - in our Library collection. Bestiaries were popular in the Middle Ages and feature creatures, both real and mythical, and a moral lesson about each one.

#Hedgehog Better late than never: this is too good not to share! I aspire to be a 3, but this week it's probably a 9 ... 🦔

As it is #NationalHedgehogDay here’s a fine watercolour by Ferdinand Bauer, MS. Sherard 238 Pl. 6 @bodleian.ox.ac.uk. Happy snuffling to all who celebrate!

Impressive 🦔 ring.

Happy #NationalHedgehogDay 🥺 This little Egyptian faience model of a hedgehog is from a tomb at Abydos, and was made around 1,500–1,300 BCE. Hedgehogs had a favourable reputation in ancient Egypt, and were often seen as a symbol of rebirth and renewal of life.

#HappyHedgehogDay !!! 🦔 Check out this little guy!! A small model of a hedgehog that is about 4,500 years old! from Chalandriani, Syros, Greece. Early Cycladic II period (2800-2300 BCE). National Archaeological Museum, Athens, Greece. 📷 My own.