Episode One

Art critic Alastair Sooke traces how the Romans during the Republic went from being art thieves and copycats to pioneering a new artistic style - realism. Roman portraits reveal what the great names from history, men like Julius Caesar and Cicero, actually looked like as modern-day artists demonstrate the ingenious techniques used to create these true to life masterpieces in marble, bronze and paint. Enthusiastic, questioning and engaging, Treasures of Ancient Rome reveals how there was so much more to the Romans than just conquering and soldiering, and charts the decline and fall of the Roman Empire through some of its hidden and most magical artistic treasures.