2017-07-03 Mon

A big-sized column was commissioned in Rome and completed in 113 A.D after the Roman emperor Trajan won the Dacian War. A series of special coins were issued from 113 to 114. One of them - a silver denarius, was sold by Nomos Ag on 17th May for 1,110 Swiss francs against an estimate of 375 Swiss francs. The 3.06 grams coin has light toning with sharp designs minor scratches.

Trajan’s column is one of the most popular monuments of Rome. It illustrates campaigns of 101 and 102 and 105 to 106 with almost 2,500 figures, out of which the emperor has been featured 59 times with his troops. It stood between the Greek and Latin Libraries and the Basilica Ulpia at the northern end of Trajan’s Forum. The reliefs can be seen from the balconies of those buildings. The statue of Trajan above the column went missing in medieval times. A bronze statue of St. Peter was built in place of the vacant spot in 1587 by Pope Sixtus V, which exists even today. The obverse of the coin features the king while the reverse depicts the column with the original statue of Trajan.