ROME – A temporary exhibition on Victorian poet Robert Browning is to run at Keats-Shelley House from Sep. 22 to Feb. 28.

English poet Robert Browning is remembered today for his use of dramatic monologue in works such as ‘My Last Duchess’ and for his extraordinary relationship with wife and fellow poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning.

The exhibition, entitled ‘Robert Browning: Reporting from Rome’ focuses upon his time spent living in Italy from 1846-1862 and the subsequent influence the country had upon his work. Items on display are set to include the 18^th century engagement ring that Browning gave to Elizabeth and his calling-card case featuring cards from Charles Dickens and Alfred Lord Tennyson, amongst others. Many artefacts and portraits on display are on loan from the provost and fellows of Eton College.

The crux of the exhibit, providing the narrative thread of Browning’s life in Italy, will be fifteen autographed letters from the poet to American sculptor William Story from the 1850s and 1860s. The letters have been in the museum’s possession since 1915 but are here on display to the public for the first time.

For those interested in Victorian poetry, the permanent exhibition at the museum features items displaying the fascination that the Romantics held for their successors in the Victorian age, including letters by Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Oscar Wilde discussing Keats’ influence.