Colonna di Marco Aurelio is a Doric column located in Rome on the Colonna Square named after her (Italian. Piazza Colonna). It was erected between 176 and 192 in memory of the Marcomannic War of Marcus Aurelius.
The monumental 40-meter column is encircled in a spiral by complex narrative bas-reliefs. They reflect the events of the Marcomanian Wars (166-180) – the history of two expeditions. The upper turns of the reliefs depict scenes of the battle of the army of Marcus Aurelius with the Sarmatians; the lower ones depict fragments of the army’s battle with German tribes.
The monument began to be built in 180 – eight decades later than the famous Trajan’s column. The battle scenes on the Aurelius column are executed less pompously than on the Trajan Column. At that time, the legions no longer consisted only of Romans – they included many mercenaries. The carvers worked out the facial expressions of the warriors perfectly, but the weapons and armor were depicted almost schematically. Among the historical scenes on the bas-reliefs there are also religious images.
The Doric column with a diameter of 3.7 m is made of Karara marble, composed of 28 hollow cylindrical blocks. There is a spiral staircase with 190-200 steps inside the column body. For a long time, climbing to the top of the monument was an entertainment for the public. Currently, only the maintenance staff can climb the stairs. The interior is illuminated through narrow slits in the cylindrical walls of the column.
The column of Marcus Aurelius was destroyed over time. It was restored only at the end of the XVI century, at the behest of Pope Sixtus V. The restoration was carried out by Domenico Fontana. Initially, a statue of Marcus Aurelius was installed on top of the monument, but it was not preserved. It was decided to replace the sculpture of the emperor with a bronze statue of the Apostle Paul.
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