Tropaeum Traiani
Encyclopedia
Civitas Tropaensium
Civitas Tropaensium was a Roman castrum situated in Scythia Minor in modern Constanţa County, Romania. Its site is now the modern settlement of Adamclisi...
(site of modern Adamclisi
Adamclisi
Adamclisi is a commune in Constanţa County, in the Dobrogea region of Romania.-History:In ancient times, a Roman castrum named Civitas Tropaensium was settled here and in 109 AD a monument named Tropaeum Traiani was built to commemorate the Roman Empire's victories over the Dacians.Colonized with...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
), built in 109
109
Year 109 was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Palma and Tullus...
in then Moesia Inferior, to commemorate Roman Emperor
Roman Emperor
The Roman emperor was the ruler of the Roman State during the imperial period . The Romans had no single term for the office although at any given time, a given title was associated with the emperor...
Trajan
Trajan
Trajan , was Roman Emperor from 98 to 117 AD. Born into a non-patrician family in the province of Hispania Baetica, in Spain Trajan rose to prominence during the reign of emperor Domitian. Serving as a legatus legionis in Hispania Tarraconensis, in Spain, in 89 Trajan supported the emperor against...
's victory over the Dacians
Dacians
The Dacians were an Indo-European people, very close or part of the Thracians. Dacians were the ancient inhabitants of Dacia...
, in 102
102
Year 102 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Ursus and Sura...
, in the Battle of Tapae
Second Battle of Tapae
The Battle of Tapae was the decisive battle of the first Dacian War, in which Roman Emperor Trajan defeated the Dacian King Decebalus's army. Other setbacks in the campaign delayed its completion until 102.-Background:...
. The monument was erected on the place where legio XXI Rapax
Legio XXI Rapax
Legio vigesima prima rapax was a Roman legion levied in 31 BC by Augustus, probably from men previously enlisted in other legions. The XXI Rapax was destroyed in 92 by the Dacians and Sarmatians...
had previously been defeated in 92
92
Year 92 was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Augustus and Saturninus...
. Before Trajan's construction, an altar
Altar
An altar is any structure upon which offerings such as sacrifices are made for religious purposes. Altars are usually found at shrines, and they can be located in temples, churches and other places of worship...
existed there, on the walls of which were inscribed the names of the 3,000 legionaries and auxilia (servicemen) who had died "fighting for the Republic". (Latin: Tropaeum from Greek: Tropaion
Tropaion
A tropaion , whence English "trophy" is an ancient Greek and later Roman monument set up to commemorate a victory over one's foes. Typically this takes the shape of a tree, sometimes with a pair of arm-like branches upon which is hung the armour of a defeated and dead foe...
, source of English: "trophy
Trophy
A trophy is a reward for a specific achievement, and serves as recognition or evidence of merit. Trophies are most often awarded for sporting events, from youth sports to professional level athletics...
").
Trajan's monument was inspired by the Augustus mausoleum
Mausoleum of Augustus
The Mausoleum of Augustus is a large tomb built by the Roman Emperor Augustus in 28 BC on the Campus Martius in Rome, Italy. The Mausoleum, now located on the Piazza Augusto Imperatore, is no longer open to tourists, and the ravages of time and carelessness have stripped the ruins bare...
, and was dedicated to the god Mars Ultor in 107/108 AD.
On the monument there were 54 metopes
Metope (architecture)
In classical architecture, a metope is a rectangular architectural element that fills the space between two triglyphs in a Doric frieze, which is a decorative band of alternating triglyphs and metopes above the architrave of a building of the Doric order...
depicting Roman legions fighting against enemies; most of these metopes are preserved in the museum nearby. The monument was supposed to be a warning to the tribes outside this newly conquered province.
The original monument has long since disintegrated. The present edifice is a reconstruction dating from 1977. The nearby museum contains many archaeological objects, including parts of the original Roman monument. Of the original 54 metopes, 48 are in the museum and 1 is in Istanbul.
Trophy
The monument was decorated with a large inscription dedicated to Mars Ultor (the revenger). The inscription has been preserved fragmentarily from two sides of the trophy hexagone, so it could be reconstructed as follows:MARTI ULTOR[I]
IM[P(erator)CAES]AR DIVI
NERVA[E] F(ILIUS) N[E]RVA
TRA]IANUS [AUG(USTUS) GERM(ANICUS)]
DAC]I[CU]S PONT(IFEX) MAX(IMUS)
TRIB(UNICIA) POTEST(ATE) XIII
IMP(ERATOR) VI CO(N)S(UL) V P(ater) P(atriae)
?VICTO EXERC]ITU D[ACORUM]
?---- ET SARMATA]RUM
---------------------]E 31.
The inscription from the main monument can be translated in this way:
"To Mars, the god of war, Caesar the emperor, son of divine Nerva, Nerva
Trajan, Augustus, who defeated the Germans, the Dacians, great priest, for
the 13th time tribune of the plebeians, proclaimed emperor by the army for
the 6th time, elected consul for the 5th time, father of our homeland,
after defeating the Dacian and the Sarmatian armies."
Metopes
On the monument was a frieze comprising 54 metopesMetope (architecture)
In classical architecture, a metope is a rectangular architectural element that fills the space between two triglyphs in a Doric frieze, which is a decorative band of alternating triglyphs and metopes above the architrave of a building of the Doric order...
. 48 metopes are hosted in the Adamclisi museum in Corbu
Corbu, Constanta
Corbu is a commune in Constanţa County, Romania.The commune includes three villages:* Corbu * Luminiţa * Vadu...
village, and one metope is hosted by Istanbul Archaeology Museum, the rest having been lost (There is a reference from Giurescu
Constantin C. Giurescu
Constantin C . Giurescu was a Romanian historian, member of Romanian Academy and professor at the University of Bucharest.Born in Focşani, son of historian Constantin Giurescu, he completed his primary and secondary studies in Bucharest...
that two of them fell into Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
River during the transport to Bucharest).
Legionaries Memorial
"in honorem et in memoriam fortissimorum virorum qui pugnantes pro republica morte occubuerunt"Archeological research
- The monument was mentioned in 1801 by William BentinckWilliam BentinckWilliam Bentinck may refer to:* William Bentinck, 1st Count Bentinck * William Bentinck , Royal Navy officer* Lord William Bentinck , British statesman...
, still the manuscript was first published in 1874. - In 1837, four prussian officers, hired by the Otoman Empire to study the Dobruja strategic situation, performs the first escavations. The team was composed by Heinrich Muhlbach, leading Friedrich Leopold Fischer, Carol Wincke-Olbendorf and Helmuth von Moltke the ElderHelmuth von Moltke the ElderHelmuth Karl Bernhard Graf von Moltke was a German Field Marshal. The chief of staff of the Prussian Army for thirty years, he is regarded as one of the great strategists of the latter 19th century, and the creator of a new, more modern method of directing armies in the field...
. They have tried to reach the center of the monument by digging an underground tunnel, nothing was found after the digging. - The monument is also visited by C. W. Wutzer from Bonn University, who make a short description of the monument and of some local legends.
- The monument was researched by Grigore Tocilescu, O. Benford and G. Niemann, between 1882–1895, George Murnu in 1909, Vasile Parvan stop the researches in 1911, Paul Nicorescu has studied the site between 1935–1945, Gheorghe Stefan and Ioan Barnea in 1945. From 1968 the site is researched under Romanian Academy supervision.