The British Museum presents Hadrian as a man of our time

History isn't fact, but fashion. We interpret it and, too often, shape and shift it to fit contemporary views of the world. Should you doubt it, just look at historical drama. Whether it's Shakespeare's Julius Caesar dressing and acting like a Renaissance prince, Hollywood grafting '50s morality onto sword and sandal epics or old BBC Jane Austen adaptations that make everyone look like '70s dinner party guests, we like to see history through the prism of our modern eyes.
This is precisely what the British Museum has done in their latest blockbuster exhibition on Hadrian, third of the so-called five good emperors and ruler of the Empire at what was arguably its cultural and economic apogee. Thus we meet Hadrian the pragmatic and wise foreign policy maker who pulled his troops out of Iraq. A multi-culturalist who toured his empire appreciating the diversity. An out-and-proud homosexual. And, since nobody is allowed to be completely positive these days, we also get an exploration into his brutality and oppression in sections on the Jewish revolts and the building of Hadrian's wall.

The curators know that they're putting modern interpretations on things, and the fact that they admit it makes it all the more interesting. At one point we come up close and personal with one of the most famous statues of Hadrian, draped in Greek robes. Since the statue was found and sent to the British Museum in the 19th century it's been thought to be proof of Hadrian as the peace-loving scholar and consumer of classical culture. Exactly what the Victorians thought a good ruler should be. Except that in the run-up to this exhibit they cleaned the statue and, acting on a hunch, took it apart. Proving quickly that the head had been stuck onto the wrong body. They then go on to juxtapose this "fake" statue with multiple military images that are definitely authentic. The Victorians saw what they wanted to see; Hadrian's own PR looks as if it was more forceful and threatening.

In 2008 we see a man who is extremely interesting, if perhaps a bit more of a torch bearer for global collaboration and sexual tolerance than he himself might have recognised. This is a great show, although not because of specific masterpieces. It's a show that balances major artifacts with smaller items, diagrams and models. It's the complete story that captivates here rather than a procession of postcard shots, and to that end I'd recommend that it really shouldn't be viewed without the accompanying audio guide and at least an hour and a half to listen to everything. As with his empire, the sum of Hadrian's parts turn out to be much greater than the individual pieces.

That said, there are several jaw droppers on display. First is the introductory piece to the whole show, a giant head and fragments of a colossal body just unearthed in Turkey last year. There are pictures beside it of the excavation. The idea that stuff like this is still waiting to be dug up made all those childhood desires to be an archeologist come to the surface again. The huge model of Hadrian's Villa at Tivoli is a dramatic way of showing off the spectacle of one of the finest sites of the ancient world. The life-sized statue of Antinous is breath-takingly beautiful; so much so it's easy to envision Hadrian's heartache when the young man met his early end. The larger-than-life-sized bronze and guilt peacocks are magnificent, and worthy of long attention. But for me, perhaps the neatest bit of the show was the clever juxtaposition between the dome of the model of the pantheon and the dome of the reading room directly above. You want evidence that Hadrian's architectural taste lived on for centuries? Just look up.

It is perhaps because I know many of the Hadrian sites well that I felt a little unfulfilled at the end of the show. Hadrian's wall, his pantheon, the Castel Sant Angelo (his tomb) and his villa at Tivoli are all awe inspiring sites of immense drama. I have had the good luck to wander around all of them. No collection of items in an exhibition, no matter how well displayed, is going to replace the feeling of actually being there. But the show does put those things in a much better context, and awakens an interest in returning to those sites for a more informed look around. For those who haven't gotten, or can't get, to the real thing, this exhibit must have been the next best thing to being there.

All of which makes me look forward to the next show, "Babylon", with keen interest. It is unlikely that any of us are going to be sightseeing around that part of the world any time soon.