English Classical scholar Mary Beard explores the physical world of the Roman Empire, finding surprising parallels with our own world. She discovers a vast empire bound together by a common material culture, and a globalised economy of such scale that evidence of its side-effects can still be seen today. As Mary examines a huge commercial and cultural network, she takes in the vital supply of olive oil to Rome, the slave trade, and the silver mines of Spain. Following the famous Roman road network, the presenter also reveals another side to the Roman Empire, where builders and traders eclipse soldiers, and slaves make the most of a hugely connected new world