Huge marbles appear on Trajan’s forum – History

A huge marble was found under the Trajan forum in Rome. The head depicts an adult male with thick hair and concentrated expression.

It was excavated in the Via Alessandrina excavation at the southern end of the Empire, the site of Porticus Trisigmentata, a huge colonnade that once was three aisles and 40-foot-tall marble columns that once stood. The porch north of the Basilica Ulpia is the ambitious opening of the Trajan Forum, built between 107 and 112 AD by Apollodorus of Damascus, whose statues, reliefs and trophies are captured in battle.

The head may be part of a huge statue on the porch, but it was not found in its original location. It is part of medieval brick and lime mortar. Centuries later, it has been reused as building materials for buildings.

The face has not been determined, but archaeologists assume that this may be a portrayal of the wine Dionysus god. A few years ago, a similar head with divine attributes (iever leaves and flower clusters) was found at the site. Another possibility is that this is an imperial figure, perhaps one of Trajan or his successors. Exquisite carvings, the strength of facial expressions, the huge size and high quality of marble markers, are the official imperial statues. It has features overlapping with Trajan’s formal portraits (from the central year between 105 and 115 AD, the proportions of the face, the structure of the bones, the upward tilted eyes, the wavy hair).

The sculpture will be studied and preserved in the coming months. Petological analysis may answer some questions about its origin. After the study is completed, the head will be exhibited in the museum of the Empire Forum.