You might think that travelling in Rome might bring more culture to the blog. And that is entirely possible in future days but today it is just going to be a ponderous ponder on my own daftness. Like many children I learnt a lot about the Romans when I was under 12. I knew that if I drew a man in a tunic and sandals with a sign saying SPQR then that would be accepted as a fair rendition of a Roman. In recent years the wonderful academic Mary Beard has kept me up to speed on all things Ancient Rome with her books and TV programmes.

I was somewhat flummoxed today to find the very same initials on contemporary refuse bins, public toilets and manhole covers.

Does that surprise anyone else? Or is it just me who finds this a little surprising to find those initials on such mundane items.