Trajane column

The column Trajane (in Latin: Columna Traiani ) is a monument located at Rome, on the Forum of Trajan, in the center of a rectangular place, behind the Basilica Ulpia , between the two libraries and vis-a-vis the Temple of Trajan.

It commemorates the campaigns carried out by Trajan against the Daces into 101-102 and 105-106.

History

The column was set up under the reign of the emperor Trajan, in 113, perhaps by the engineer Apollodore of Damas, whose role in the construction of the whole of the forum of Trajan is not well established: it is possible that this one supervised only work.

The column was crowned of a statue of the emperor, whose ashes were formerly contained inside the base. This bronze statue of Trajan, lost, was replaced by that of holy Pierre in 1588, under the pontificate of Sixte Quint.

Description

The barrel of the column consists of, or 18 colossal blocks of marmor lunensis , is called today Marbre of Carrare, or out of marble of Paros, a diameter of 3,83 m and weighing each one approximately 40 tons, hollowed out for the installation of enlightened snail an interior staircase of 185 steps of 43 small rectangular openings. The barrel is decorated with a continuous plank in Bas-relief S 200 meters length rolled up in spiral until the top. With it was high of 100 feet (29,77 m) is added the Piédestal and statue bases it: the unit reaches a height of 40,50 then Mr.

The barrel

The barrel appears a doric column whose capital and it base are apparent, as well as the higher Cannelure S. The unit is surrounded by a long identifiable band historiée with an immense roller of papyrus going up in Spirale, developing in all approximately 200 meters of a plank of 2500 characters in Bas-relief S laid out on 23 whorls.

This long helicoid low-relief provides invaluable information on arts, manners and military equipment, as well of the Romans as of Daces. The monument is entirely with the glory of the monarch. The reliefs, considered as one of the masterpieces of the Roman sculpture, show an account of 184 scenes.

Scenes

The account, which proceeds uninterrupted, does not show only scenes of battles, but also of the transfers and departures of troops, work of fortifications, secret meetings, sacrifices, embassies and tenders. The various episodes are put in scene with decorations of rocks, trees, buildings which seem well to refer to events particular and lived, and not with models agreed upon, idealized.

The scenes of completed works by the soldiers particularly rich in details such as bridges, forts, camps or are seen rivers and fortifications as the crow flies, probably belonging to the tradition of the Roman painting of the triumphal sights, which one carried the panels in procession at the time of the Triomphe S of the victorious generals, which one wanted to show to the people the exploits and most outstanding acts of war.

Trajan itself is represented 59 times: its presence is underlined by the convergence of the scene and the glances turned towards him. It with the head of the columns, is represented profile, the coat with the wind; it supervises work of fortifications, sacrifices to the gods, speaks with its soldiers, comforts them, receives the tender of the barbarians and attends the executions.

A pressing rate/rhythm, all in action, bind between them the various scenes whose true protagonist is the value, the virtus of the Roman Armée. The episodes dynamic, dramatic, pathetic, merry, solemn, the ceremonies follow one another in a range of very varied tonalities and reach accents of a very special intensity in the scene of the Torture inflicted by the women daces with the Roman prisoners with the naked and vigorous bodies, in the presentation with Trajan of the distinct heads of the Daces, in the escape of the Sarmates to the doors armor S, in the reception of the ambassadors Barbare S according to the long ones and sumptuous exotic habits, to the imposing breath of the scene of tender of the Daces at the end of the first campaign, resting on contrast between the vertical lines and the calm solemn one of the group of Trajan sitting, surrounded by the officers, with the Enseigne S, and the oblique lines of the confused mass of the knelt Daces, the shield S with ground and the arms tended, calling upon imperial leniency.

Style

The scenes of the column of Trajan constitute a historical account which gathers the artistic tradition of the hellenistic Art and the very Roman solemnity of the exaltation of the Empire. Realism dominates in the narration and the single element symbolic system is the personification of imposing and solemn the the bearded Danube which, emerging from its bed, invites the Romans to pass. One still feels very well in the representation of space and the landscape, in the scenes of action full with dynamism, in the naturalness with which the representation of the human figure is expressed, the major tradition of the Greek naturalism. The great quality of the relief made allot the sculptures to a “unknown Master of the companies of Trajan” with which one owes perhaps also the “large plank of Trajan” whose plates are employed again on the Arc of Constantin. Giovanni Becatti saw well in the column of Trajan the most luminous example of the " fusion of Greek teaching and the Roman tradition in the imperial art of the time of Trajan". The visibility of decoration was not supported by the position of the column, was placed in the middle of a gantry tightened, especially if one takes account of the possible presence of color, now disappeared, and of insertions of Bronze for the weapons and the instruments. It is possible that one could have a vision more brought closer since the terraces of cover of the side Nef external of the Basilica Ulpia, or since those which covered probably also the gantries, opposite the two libraries. A reading " abrégée" was possible also without it being necessary to turn around the column to follow the whole narration, while following the scenes according to a vertical order, since their covering in the various whorls seems to follow a coherent logic. all the men are equipped

The pedestal

The pedestal is decorated on three faces with low-reliefs representing with the piled up weapons. The angles are overcome by four eagle S supporting a garland of bay-trees. The last face is that of the door, surmounted of a Dédicace included between two Victoire S.

The dedication

One can read on the basis of column the following inscription:

SENATVS·POPVLVSQVE·ROMANVS

IMP·CAESARI·DIVI·NERVAE·F·NERVAE
TRAIANO·AVG·GERM·DACICO·PONTIF
MAXIMO·TRIB·POT·XVII·IMP·VI·COS·VI·P·P·
AD·DECLARANDVM·QVANTAE·ALTITVDINIS
MONS·AND·LOCVS·SUCH AN AMOUNT OF '' IBVS·SIT·EGESTVS'

This inscription is one of the most famous examples of Latin epigraphy using the capital Latin monumental (“quadrata”) , more particularly used for the engraved texts. The engraver took care to use an increasing scale for the size of the characters of the higher lines read by a spectator placed downwards. The words are separated by points, the usual abbreviations of the Latin epigraphy are used. The last line of the inscription was partially notched, but one restores it without sorrow.

Translation:

the senate and people Roman, with the emperor César Nerva Trajan Auguste, wire of divine Nerva, victorious of German and Daces, large pontiff of the power tribunician for the seventeenth time, emperor and consul for the sixth time and father of the fatherland, in order to indicate to which height was the hill and the place which were dug by so great work.

Destination of the column

After the death of Trajan, in 117, the Roman Sénat decided that ashes of the emperor would be deposited in the column. The column remarkably resisted the devastations of time, but it tomb was violated with the fall of Rome (probably as of 476).

Techniques of realization

The realization of the monument required the implementation of complex techniques, with a advanced organization and an exemplary coordination between the various trade associations which worked on the building site. It was indeed a question of superimposing blocks of Marbre of a weight of approximately 40 tons and of making them coincide perfectly, by taking account either of the reliefs, probably outlined already and gradually finished during the building site, or of the interior snail staircase, which it was already necessary to have dug in the blocks before laying out them, which poses singular problems of Stéréotomie.

After Antiquity

The column remained always upright even after the ruin of the other buildings of the Forum of Trajan and the largest respect was always granted to him: a medieval document of the Senate of 1162 established the public property of it and any damage prohibited some. A small church, Saint Niccolò de Columna, which was to rise with the foot of the monument, is attested as from 1032, with an oratory at the top of the column, perhaps but it goes back to VIIIe or IXe century. The church was probably demolished at the time of the arrival in Rome of Charles Quint in 1546. Always during XVIe century, one made place around the column with the elimination of some private buildings, while the pedestal was disengaged from rubble under which it was buried. Under the pope Sixte Quint was set up the statue out of bronze of saint Pierre and a surrounding wall was arranged around the place. The zone of vision around the pedestal was still arranged and cleaned on several occasions, until the excavations of the beginning of the XIXe century.

Copies and mouldings of museographic quality

The study of the Low-relief S being inconvenient on the spot (the Jumelles are strongly advised), one can have recourse to copies of good quality, allowing an easy observation:

  • the Museum of Roman Civilization of the EURO, to Rome, presents one of the three copies carried out in 1861 by Napoleon III, which gave this specimen to the pope Pie IX (in all 125 Moulage S of Plâtre). The current exposure, which proceeds on 200 meters, allows an observation perfect and close to all the reliefs of the column.

  • the Musée of national Archeology of Saint-Germain-in-Bush hammer has a Galvanoplastie XIXe century of the low part of the barrel (in the ditches, west coast).
  • a complete moulding is presented to the Victoria and Albert Museum of London.
  • the museum of Roman History of Bucharest presents another complete Moulage of the column, realized by the Germans during the Second world war.

The influence of the Trajane column

The Trajane column was often used as model for other monuments with avid monarchs of glory. The best example is the Colonne Vendôme, with Paris, dedicated to the emperor Napoleon i.

The first copies were naturally carried out with Constantinople, the Rome News founded by Constantin in 324. it is about:

One finds also all over the world many columns having taken one or more elements with that of Trajan.

Sources, references

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