This bewitching poison, favourite objects

The exhibition 'This bewitching poison: alcohol and the Royal College of Physicians' opens today and I thought that over the next few days I would note down some of may favourite objects in the exhibition. I hope it whets the appetite to visit the show.

In Britain, beer was around well before the Roman invasion of 43BC, but it was the Romans who introduced wine to our nation and created rituals around drinking and feasting.

This little wine beaker, on loan from the Museum of London bears the motto PIE, a Latinised form of a Greek motto meaning 'drink and live' or even more strongly 'drink to live'. The beaker is broken around the rim- not surprisingly as it has a narrow base and is somewhat top-heavy, making it easily damaged. As with many Roman vessels the shape is bulbous, it widens out and then narrows again towards the top. The potter who threw it must have been pretty skilled to get this right. It is really satisfying to handle and I imagine that to hold it full in the hand would be a pleasurable thing. Almost like holding a favourite mug full of tea!