On Wednesday evening, Miss Brice arranged for a number of keen Latin students from Year 11 and the Lower Sixth to have the opportunity to attend an online talk put on by her old college, St John’s College, Oxford, by their Senior Tutor, Professor Matthew Nicholls. Dr Nicholls has spent ten years creating a digital model of Ancient Rome, which has been used in TV documentaries, films and computer games.

The talk explored how 3D-modelling technologies and virtual reality can open new understandings of the past.

Mimi Seward (Lower Sixth) said: “I thoroughly enjoyed listening to Dr Nicholls’ enthusiastic explanation of his digital model of Rome; I found it particularly interesting to hear his motivations and journey. It was fascinating to see the incredible hard work put into such a detailed model. It was exciting to consider what his work might be used for in future, and hearing his hopes to use it for further collaborative research has me in suspense for the future.”

Jaspreet Sahota (Lower Sixth) said: “It was very interesting to watch a lecture as I had never experienced this. It was fascinating to see years of his work condensed into a 30 second video, showing how much effort and hard work he had put into his project. Not only did we see his classical knowledge but also his computer and architectural skills.”

Find out more about Virtual Rome here.

Explore ancient Rome with SketchFab here.