Behind the scenes: Inside the plaster casts of Trajan's Column

The cast of Trajan's Column taken from the original 1st century AD monument, represents sculpture from the earliest period in the Cast Courts. The cast of the column was obtained for the Museum in 1864 at a cost of £2,498 11s 2d (which translates approximately to £107,164 in today's money). Pieces of relief were cast in sections from metal moulds held in the Louvre which had been cast under the direction of Napoleon III. The commissioning of casts of the base appears to have been an after-thought in 1872.

The gallery is not high enough to accommodate the column in one piece even without the surmounting figure of St Peter. In the original catalogue of 1874 the display of the column in two sections was seen as a distinct bonus, providing as it does the opportunity to see much of the detail of the reliefs not clearly visible on the original.

Commenting on the opening of the Architectural Courts in 1873, The Art Journal remarked on the cast 'the march of the warriors of Rome will come to a sudden conclusion at the glass-ceiling, but will recommence on the floor of the court'. The cast was made in sections of plaster reliefs each individually numbered to make up a giant jigsaw and these were attached to a brick built inner chimney. The sections of relief are approximately 1.2m high, 0.6m wide, and about 2.5cm thick.

As now, the cast of Trajan's column was a substantial and important feature of these courts on their opening in 1873, and was one of the first objects to be built into the gallery at the time of construction. Although the reception to the column was generally good when the gallery opened, the Art Journal thought it 'crowded out of sight those (casts) of more sensible proportions'. Its construction, however, extended the frontiers of Museum display practice and afforded the opportunity for students of art and those not wealthy enough to participate in the Grand Tour, to see this important monument of the Roman world. Like many outdoor architectural monuments, the original column has suffered from the ravages of pollution, but our cast, taken in the mid nineteenth century, retains many areas of detail which have disappeared from the original.

Click on the images below for larger versions.

Trajan's Column, inside the upper section

Trajan's Column, inside the upper section

Trajan's Column, inside the base of the column

Trajan's Column, inside the base of the column

Trajan's column, inside the base

Trajan's column, inside the base

Trajan's column, inside the base

Trajan's column, inside the base

A numbered section from the outside of Trajan's column. Museum no. 1864-128

A numbered section from the outside of Trajan's column. Museum no. 1864-128

Trajan's column, lower part of the base section. Museum no. 1864-128

Trajan's column, lower part of the base section. Museum no. 1864-128

Written by Diane Bilbey, Sculpture Department, Victoria and Albert Museum