FORO DI TRAIANO
Forum housing the Trajan column, the largest and most sumptuous of the forums in Rome.
It is the largest and most sumptuous of the forums. The Forum of Trajan is a quadrilateral measuring 300 m by 190 m, built in 112 CE. It is best known for the famous column that bears his name. Bounded by the Ulpia Basilica, the Forums of Caesar and Augustus and the Markets of Trajan, the forum was designed by the great architect Apollodorus of Damascus. For its construction, an entire hill between the Quirinal and the Capitol was razed to create the necessary scale.
Trajan column. 10 Roman feet high, equivalent to 30 m, it tells the story of Trajan's victorious campaigns against Dacia (present-day Romania) in 17 marble rings and 155 paintings. It is the main monument of the forum. The column is bulging at mid-height, to avoid the impression of concavity that its height would provoke; the relative size of the figures in its bas-reliefs in relation to the whole increases as the viewer moves away from it. Try it, it's obvious! The 2,500 scenes that adorn the column provide invaluable insights into the military techniques and equipment of the period. To find out more, casts on display at the EUR-musée de la Civilisation romaine allow you to analyze every detail. The base of the column housed Emperor Trajan's gold urn, which was unfortunately stolen in the Middle Ages. Since the 17th century, the statue of St. Peter at the top of the column has replaced the lost statue of the emperor.
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