The Metropolis

Reviewed: Museum of London's Roman London app

Mike Pollitt | Tuesday 16 August, 2011 10:41

The Londinium iPhone and iPad app from the Museum of London was released a couple of weeks ago. It’s free, and it includes a “Roman walk”, which uses Google maps to guide you through the vias and tabernas of the old place. Last week I walked that walk; now I shall talk it.

The walk starts by the Museum of London itself, with a crumbly old bit of wall in a garden off the main road. If you take the car park access road it’s possible to get into the garden where the stones lie, and a very pleasant spot it is too, quiet and reflective and Ozymandian. There’s also a lovely little plant and herb garden tucked away behind some masonry.

Then you cross the road to see some more wall, before wandering down the the Guildhall, which is built on the site of the Roman amphitheatre. What happens there is amazing. Using augmented reality something something, the app overlays video of two gladiators jousting onto your iPhone viewfinder. So you can see the Guildhall as in the picture above, but instead of those two tourists looking aimless you watch a couple of swarthy gladiators battering each other with sticks. History, as they say, comes alive. It’s like travelling into the future to look at the past! I had to have a little sit down afterwards to take it all in.

From there the walk meanders along pleasantly enough. The map highlights where various artifacts (“phallic stud” etc) have been found, although there’s a slightly irksome process to go through on the iPhone each time where you “dig up” the object by rubbing the screen. After the tenth one I stopped bothering. There’s more augmented reality at the Temple of Mithras near Bank tube station, although not quite as striking as the gladiators, and there’s some bonus Latin to get stuck into as you pass Monument, with its inscription commemorating the Great Fire. “Fatalis ignis” pretty much sums it up.

Then a stroll to the Tower of London and some more wall. The app has plenty more sights and finds to explore, including a couple tucked away in buildings along the route which can be viewed by appointment. Also along the way: St Dunstan’s in the East (a lovely garden in a blitz-bombed church), multiple coffee shops, an underground KFC, and plenty of pubs. I wouldn’t recommend this walk unreservedly, for one thing there are precious few Roman remains visible above ground. But if you like your London history it’s a fascinating route, and the Guildhall gladiator show is definitely worth checking out. And did I mention the app is free?

---