2025
The Roman Society is pleased to invite applications for its 2025 Museum & Heritage Summer Placement Scheme. The placements may be held at the following museums / heritage organisations listed below.
https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/corbridge-roman-town-hadrians-wall/
The successful candidate will work on an aspect of the Hadrian’s Wall Collections with English Heritage. This placement must either be taken 23 June – 4 July OR 1 – 12 September.
The successful candidate will work with Andrew Parkin, Keeper of Archaeology, on the collections and gain an insight into the varied tasks of working in a museum
The successful candidate will have the opportunity to complete work on three different tasks to enable the completion of museum or virtual exhibitions on Roman Britain: 1) historical and/or archaeological research on Roman Britain; 2) the preparation of the interpretation materials for the public, for example, graphic display panels, web articles or reconstruction drawings; 3) shadowing a historian at project meetings and help prepare internal project documents. These examples are indicative and the location, format and expected outputs of the placement programme will be determined by project timings and requirements, and a discussion with the candidate about their interests and skills.
This placement offers the opportunity to gain experience in digital classics research. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to implement a small, supervised but independent piece of work involving the photography, 3D imaging and cataloguing of antiquities in the ICS's Ehrenberg Collection. Advanced digital skills are not a requirement, but familiarity with basic tools such as spreadsheets, database tables and/or digital photography would be an advantage.
The successful candidate will work on a small gallery project. There will be plenty of opportunity to work with curators, collections managers, and of course, with the artefacts.
It is expected that the successful candidate will work on increasing awareness and access to the Corinium Museum’s Roman collections with a special emphasis on Orpheus. The placement will work with the museum team to develop resources as part of Project Orpheus, an NHLF funded project in Cirencester taking place throughout 2025. The project celebrates the discovery of the Barton Farm Orpheus mosaic found just over 200 years ago and all things Orpheus – song, crafts and the natural world. The placement will help grow the museum’s profile and create a resource highlighting the proliferation of Orpheus mosaics across the Roman Empire and particularly in Britain. There will also be some public facing engagement; the opportunity to create a temporary display of Roman archaeology and the development of a ‘highlight tour’ relating to Orpheus. We will invite the successful candidate to help raise the public profile of Project Orpheus through vlogs, blogs and interviews with specialists – all creative ideas are welcome. A knowledge of classical myths and literature as well as a passion for Roman archaeology, are useful pre-requisites for this project placement.
The placement will provide an exciting opportunity to be involved in the ongoing cataloguing and care of the Roman Baths Collection, working with Roman material from Keynsham and Bath to support the move of these objects to a new store, and taking part in our Festival of Archaeology outreach activities in the community.
The Roman Baths is an internationally renowned Accredited Museum and archaeological site, with a Designated collection of mainly archaeological material dating from the Palaeolithic through to early modern, as well as local history objects and archival material. The Roman collection includes items from the Roman Baths and Temple complex on which the museum is based, including the bronze head of the goddess Sulis Minerva, and votive offerings from the Sacred Spring. You will be working with the Collections department, a small team responsible for the cataloguing, conservation, and care of the objects in the collection.
This Placement will provide experience in all areas of collections care and management, opportunities to engage with visitors and participate in learning activities, and the chance to work with archaeological objects. All training and guidance will be provided. During your placement, you will contribute to our online content by producing a blog and social media posts about the Collections at the Roman Baths.
We welcome all levels of skills and knowledge in applying for this placement, but interest in the Roman archaeology, digitisation, and working in museum collections is encouraged.
How to Apply
- The dates of the placements may be determined by consultation between the successful candidates and institutions but are usually for 2-3 weeks during the summer vacation.
- All Undergraduate and Masters students are eligible to apply.
- Bursaries of £300 will be offered as a contribution towards travel or living expenses.
- Candidates should apply by letter setting out their reasons for wishing to undertake a placement and outlining any previous experience.You should also provide the name and email address of a referee.You may specify the Museum or organisation you would prefer to be based at, or submit an open application.
- Queries and letters of application should be addressed to the Secretary, Dr Fiona Haarer, and sent by email by 20 May, 2025 to: office@romansociety.org
Reports
Read reports from previous bursary holders here.