Come, see, and conquer

In honor of the opening of the Imperial Rome exhibit on Friday, here's one of our favorite Rome-themed jokes: Cicero was at a party talking to some insufferable braggart who was going on about how if he were a general, he'd be Alexander, and if he were a philosopher, he'd be Aristotle, and so on. Snitty Cicero replied, "And if you were a sewer, you'd be the Cloaca Maxima." Ba-da-dum.

If you got that joke, this exhibit is probably right up your alley. And if you didn't get it, you'll probably enjoy it too. The exhibit opens Friday at the Houston Museum of Natural Science and features all kinds of items, dealing with everything from banquets to baths, religion to politics, peasants to emperors.

The exhibit will of course also bring a number of distinguished lecturers to the museum. The first of these will be Caroline Quenemoen of Rice University. She will lecture next Tuesday, February 27, on architecture in Rome. For a full schedule of lectures at the HMNS, click here.

What: Imperial Rome
When: February 23 - July 29
Where: Houston Museum of Natural Science
Tickets: Ranging from $7-$15, purchase here