There are few surviving examples of Ancient Roman victory columns. Ancient Roman victory columns are tall and symbolic of the uncontested power of Rome. Many of these columns have not survived, due to the fact that invading nations have toppled many of them beyond repair.

Trajan’s Column is probably the best known example of an Ancient Roman victory column. Including the pedestal, the column is 35 meters high. The Column is decorated with scenes that depict the war between the Dacians and the Romans. Not only are these scenes artistically important, they provide historians with a rich reference to Ancient Roman warfare. Inside the column is a staircase that reaches the top of the column.

The Column of Marcus Aurelius is around 49 meters high and made of marble. The inside of the Column is illuminated by slits that emit light from the outside. The entire column is decorated with scenes from two Roman victories against the Danubians and the Marcommani. Unlike Trajan’s Column, this Column focuses on the facial features of the soldiers and the captured. The captured women and children show expressions of fear and misery, and their heads are disproportionately larger than their bodies.

Only the base of the Column of Antoninus Pius survives, but ancient records show that it was about 15 meters high. Ancient Roman coins also show that a statue of Antoninus was surmounted on top of the column. The scene on the base shows a winged angel that is carrying Antoninus and his wife to heaven. As you can see, this Column is different from Trajan and Marcus Aurelius’s Column in that it was not a column devoted to Rome’s military conquests.