Traiano, Rome

This statue presents Emperor Trajan along Via dei Fori Imperiali. His reign ran from ninety-eight to one hundred seventeen. Born Marcus Ulpius Traianus in Italica, in Roman Spain, he belonged to a senatorial family whose roots lay in Umbria.

Nerva adopted this admired commander as his successor, and Trajan assumed imperial power after Nerva died. Under Trajan, Rome’s empire expanded farther than it ever had. Victories brought Dacia, Armenia, Assyria, Mesopotamia, and the Nabataean kingdom into Roman control, though the eastern conquests proved difficult to hold.

Dacian wealth, especially precious-metal deposits, flowed into the empire. This emperor also remade Rome through public building: baths, a vast forum complex, markets, and the column whose carved scenes recount fighting in Dacia. The Senate honored him with the title Optimus, meaning the finest ruler.

After his death, it declared him divine and placed his ashes beneath Trajan’s Column. Let the statue connect the avenue around you with the ruler whose projects still shape Rome’s ancient core.