Colonna Traiana

Ancient Rome

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Towering over the Foro di Traiano, Trajan's column (AD 113) is adorned with a microscopically-detailed spiral frieze illustrating the Romans' victorious campaign against Dacia (roughly modern-day Romania). It later served as Trajan's tomb – his ashes were interred in a room inside the column's hollow base – and was crowned by a statue of the emperor. In the late 16th century, Pope Sixtus V replaced this with the statue of St Peter you see today.

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