The British Museum’s block-buster of the year, this exhibition is very popular and too busy; perhaps it was a mistake to go on a Sunday morning.  Although I have been to Pompeii, but not Herculaneum, it is good to see the artefacts that came of of the excavations at this museum and be reminded of the the quality of the work that existed there.  The exhibition is themed around the rooms of a villa which is quite helpful and avoids discussing some of the more difficult parts of Pompeii such as the brothel, though the citizens of those two cities obviously knew how to have a good time.In particular it is astonishing to see the quality of metalwork, such as the silver, and how well it has survived; some of it could still be used today.  On interesting fact is that to excavate the main drain in Herculaneum, the archaelologists removed 700 sacks of human excrement.  That is true dedication!