Mary Beard Lecture - The Meroë Head of Augustus

The incomparable Mary Beard visited us to help celebrate the last few days of our loan of the Meroë Head of Augustus from the British Museum.

As a part of the BBC Civilisations series, Professor Dame Beard hosted two sessions with us, talking about the history of this significant artefact, the site and the archaeology techniques of the day. Our good friends from MSP were there to capture every moment!

Help us caption & translate this video!

[dalestaley]

I've had a great day listening to Mary Beard while I did my work around the house. I adore her. She's such a treasure.

[rachaelrogers]

I love Mary Beard and she is extraordinary. I've grown to LOVE MARY BEARD! THANK YOU FOR THE SWEET LESSONS IN THE LIVES OF THE ANCIENT ROMANS .. NO ONE CAN DO IT BETTER!!! YOU ARE UNFORGETTABLE!

[karenclement]

I would rather watch Mary Beard than any other woman. She not only is knowledgeable but had a captivating personality and sense of humor that other lecturers would only come across as dry causing viewers to turn them off.

[ObiWanKeighobi]

Drove all the way from Manchester for this!

[thebotformalityknownasdale]

The introduction gave me more reasons to love and respect Mary thank you for teaching me all you have !

[vijaygopal]

How many doll faced women could claim the aura which this wonderful woman incarnate, not to talk about exceptional talent and honesty. Whoever calls her ugly must be having a really ugly mind.Could we ever get enough of Professor Mary Beard❤. I wish youtube publishes more of her documentaries if there are any as well.

[fionachalom]

I went to Meroe and only wish I had hear this prior to going. Wonderful lecture.

[davidsabillon]

Brilliant. Like commented and subscribed 👍

[ComplainingHenry]

At the risk of sounding like a prig, Beard pronounces "Meroë" incorrectly throughout her talk. The diacritic on the "e" (ë) changes the pronunciation to "Meh-row-AY". This is significant as, confusingly, there is a modern town in Sudan called "Merowe" (Meh-row-ee) that has nothing whatsoever to do with the ancient capital of Meroë (where the head came from). Unfortunately, very few people are well enough versed in Meroitic archaeology to realise this, hence this is a common error.

[mikesummers-smith]

I feel sure that the whole audience was enthralled by that 7-minute introduction. Everything that mattered could have been said in 2, without notes, and there would have been 5 more minutes for questions.

[lamodernista]

I wanted to paint out that white spot on the wall behind her the whole time I was watching this.

[stephenmurphy]

Today, protruding ears are 'pinned' at an early age. Augustus was normal in an age before
plastic surgery and would have seemed normal to Suetonius.

[mackray]

Should read Dale Carnegie - how to introduce a guest !

[Dizinii]

(with Humprey Bogart accent) Now that's a smart Dame!

[brendawarren]

I'm reading her book, Women and Power: a Manifesto, which is two of her lectures published in book form. And I've watched her BBC series on Rome. And her debate with Boris Johnson. I admire her greatly. I must, however, write that it's only her hair that makes me cringe, as I have when I've seen other women with long, stringy hair. How might it look in a long, beautiful, silvery braid over one shoulder or in a chignon. Perhaps it would even enhance her celebrity, her pulchritude. And too, I hold men to standards of appearance. No long, stringy hair, no long, scraggly beards, ughhh! And that offender of hair par excellence--Einstein. Suppose genius negates time for or interest in appearance. Voila!

[Sunfried]

I think she's a very brainy babe.

[southpolesurfer]

She is brilliant and I was too quick to judge her on appearance, but I watched and then I continue to watch this, and since I’ve been waiting for anything new with Marie to come on, she is absolute gold. She reminds me of the best of the BBC from years, before he got infested by left-wing woke ism, she is absolutely brilliant anybody making a judgement it’s easy to be done but Mary really is that special person she’s really an incredible personality very fun, very engaging and highly entertaining and also anyone who speaks Latin in my book is good

[macvena]

Great video despite the first 7 minutes of rubbish.

[stconstable]

I was enjoying this enormously until Beard totally dismissed Seutonius's clearly accurate description. Handsome. Curled hair. Startling eyes. Nose. Small teeth (in a small mouth).

[JustinTyme]

“Why am I and why is everyone else so sure” as of nobody disagrees with her. How deceitful of her. Shameful.