I had to come on here and recommend this place for any Roman military history buffs! Res Militares!
I visited Italy from the US for the first time with a few day stop in Rome. As a 25M, I occasionally do occasionally to regularly think about the Roman Empire. Speaking from tourist POV you would think there'd be more museums here dedicated to the army and their conquest, but there wasn't. So in my research I found this place, Res Militares. At first glance the place may seem small but it was a lot of fun. You can instantly tell the guide/owner was extremely knowledgeable and passionate about the history. He had several sets of recreation armor and equipment and walked me through the different eras, talking about all the different pieces, their origins, why they were named and designed the way they were. I was also able to handle a lot of the swords, shields, javelins, etc, and learn how to use them!
After the experience he had a decent selection of souvenirs, all designed/selected by him for historical accuracy. If you love swords, bring a checked bag to get one! There were several different types of gladius(es?), each based on real finds, each with a story on why they were designed and named the way they were.
This is starting to sound like a promotion, but I really enjoyed it that much especially after looking at ruins for the past 2-3 days.
All in all, a fantastic experience! Would recommend. It's the next best thing to seeing the original artifacts themself!
Here is the link to their website