DOI chapter:
Chap. V: Magnificence of Ancient Rome - its Cloacæ - Aqueducts - Viæ - Forums - Temples - Thermæ - Theatres - Instances of private Magnificence - Greatness, the Characteristic of Roman Taste at all times
DOI Page / Citation link:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.62268#0198
188
CLASSICAL TOUR
Ch. V.
The Forum Trajani, or Ulpianum, was the
last in date, but the first in beauty. The splen-
dor of these edifices was indeed progressive : the
Julian was supposed to have surpassed the Ro-
man ; that of Augustus is ranked by Pliny among
pulclierrima opera quce unquam, and yet it was
acknowledged to be inferior to that ofNerva;
the latter yielded in its turn to the matchless edi-
fice of Trajan. This forum consisted of four
porticos, supported by pillars of the most beauti-
ful marble ; the roof of the porticos rested upon
brazen beams, and was covered with brazen
plates ; it was adorned with statues and chariots
all of brass gilt: the pavement was of variegat-
ed marble. The entrance was at one end by a
triumphal arch, at the other and opposite was a
temple; on one side a Basilica, on the other a
public library : in the centre rose the celebrated
column crowned with the colossal statue of Trajan,
Apollodorus was the architect of this wonderful
pile, and so great was the beauty, I might almost
say, the perfection of the architecture, and so rich
the materials, that those who beheld it seem to
have been struck dumb w7ith astonishment, and
at a loss to find words to express their admira-
tion.*
* Su«h at least appears to have been the sensation expe-
CLASSICAL TOUR
Ch. V.
The Forum Trajani, or Ulpianum, was the
last in date, but the first in beauty. The splen-
dor of these edifices was indeed progressive : the
Julian was supposed to have surpassed the Ro-
man ; that of Augustus is ranked by Pliny among
pulclierrima opera quce unquam, and yet it was
acknowledged to be inferior to that ofNerva;
the latter yielded in its turn to the matchless edi-
fice of Trajan. This forum consisted of four
porticos, supported by pillars of the most beauti-
ful marble ; the roof of the porticos rested upon
brazen beams, and was covered with brazen
plates ; it was adorned with statues and chariots
all of brass gilt: the pavement was of variegat-
ed marble. The entrance was at one end by a
triumphal arch, at the other and opposite was a
temple; on one side a Basilica, on the other a
public library : in the centre rose the celebrated
column crowned with the colossal statue of Trajan,
Apollodorus was the architect of this wonderful
pile, and so great was the beauty, I might almost
say, the perfection of the architecture, and so rich
the materials, that those who beheld it seem to
have been struck dumb w7ith astonishment, and
at a loss to find words to express their admira-
tion.*
* Su«h at least appears to have been the sensation expe-