Piazza Venezia
Rome, Italy
Trajan's Column, Rome
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Photo: Mattis, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia CommonsFit in nearby today
The essentials in 10 seconds
- Entry
- Free, viewed from the street
- Hours
- Open 24 hours, free, viewed from outside
- Time on site
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A typical visit without queueing. In high season add 15–30 minutes. - 15 min
- With kids
- Fine with kids
- Date
- AD 113, under Emperor Trajan
- Height
- ≈ 30 m shaft, ≈ 35 m with pedestal
- Frieze
- ≈ 190 m spiral, 23 turns, ≈ 2,600 figures
- Time needed
- 15 minutes
- Location
- Trajan's Forum by Piazza Venezia; 5 minutes from the Vittoriano
Key facts
AD 113the column was dedicated to Emperor Trajan
Sourcei
English Wikipedia≈ 30 mshaft of 29 Carrara marble drums; about 35 m with pedestal
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English Wikipedia≈ 190 mlength of the spiral frieze, 23 turns
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English Wikipedia≈ 2,600figures in the reliefs
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English Wikipedia185 stepsan internal spiral staircase — closed to visitors
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English Wikipedia1587a bronze statue of St Peter was placed on top
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English WikipediaTrajan's Column facts
The column was dedicated in AD 113 in the middle of Trajan's Forum, the last and largest of the Imperial Fora, probably designed by Apollodorus of Damascus. Its shaft is built from 29 huge drums of Carrara marble, hollowed out to hold a spiral staircase of 185 steps up to a viewing platform.
The inscription on the base says the column marks the height of the hillside dug away to build the forum. After Trajan's death a golden urn with his ashes was placed in the base. A statue of the emperor once stood on top; in 1587 Pope Sixtus V replaced it with a bronze St Peter.
The reliefs
The star is the spiral frieze, about 190 metres long, winding 23 times up the shaft. It holds some 2,600 figures, with Trajan himself appearing nearly sixty times, and tells the story of his campaigns in Dacia — roughly modern Romania — in the early 2nd century.
Most scenes show army life rather than fighting: legionaries building bridges, camps and roads, crossing the Danube, felling trees, loading ships, the emperor addressing troops and offering sacrifices. Historians treat it as the key visual record of Roman soldiers, kit and engineering. The reliefs were originally painted.
What to look for
- The start of the frieze — the Danube river god rises as troops cross a pontoon bridge.
- Camp building — soldiers hauling stone and raising walls.
- Trajan himself — the figure everyone else turns towards.
- Victory — halfway up, writing on a shield between the two halves of the story.
- The pedestal — with its inscription and carved weapons.
- St Peter — at the very top, holding his keys.
Where is Trajan's Column?
It stands at the northern corner of Trajan's Forum, at the start of Via dei Fori Imperiali, a few minutes from Piazza Venezia and the Vittoriano. Two Baroque domed churches flank it, and the curved façade of Trajan's Market rises behind the forum ruins. You view it for free from the railing above the excavations.
How to get there
Tap a route to highlight it on the map.
Where are you starting from?
We’ll draw it on the map on foot and by taxi; metro and buses open in your maps app. Your location isn’t stored.
On foot
- Piazza Venezia is about 3 min away on foot.
- Vittoriano is about 7 min away on foot.
- Imperial Fora is about 4 min away on foot.
More tips
- Walk from Piazza Venezia — 3–5 minutes east.
- Buses 40, 64, 70 and 87 and tram 8 stop at Piazza Venezia.
- Metro line B to Cavour or Colosseo, then 10–15 minutes on foot.
- From the Colosseum, 15 minutes along Via dei Fori Imperiali.
Is Trajan's Column worth seeing?
Yes — it's free, on the way between Piazza Venezia and the Colosseum, and one of the most famous works of ancient sculpture, the model for the Column of Marcus Aurelius and the Vendôme Column in Paris. Spend fifteen minutes tracing the spiral upwards. It's floodlit at night.
At the column
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Ancient Rome: compare and choose
Ancient sites in Rome rated by YesGo. Click a column header to sort.
| Pantheon | 82 | 30 min | ≈ €5 | 12 min walk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colosseum | 73 | 2 h | ≈ €18 | 16 min walk |
| Roman Forum | 63 | 1 h 30 min | ≈ €18 with Colosseum | 7 min walk |
| Circus Maximus | 63 | 30 min | Free | 19 min walk |
| Trajan's Columnyou are here | 60 | 15 min | Free | — |
| Capitoline Hill | 58 | 30 min | Free | 5 min walk |
| Castel Sant'Angelo | 57 | 1 h 30 min | ≈ €15–20 | 29 min walk |
| Arch of Constantine | 57 | 15 min | Free | 15 min walk |
| Palatine Hill | 54 | 1 h 30 min | ≈ €18 with Colosseum | 15 min walk |
| Mausoleum of Augustus | 53 | 45 min | ≈ €5, booking | 23 min walk |
| Largo di Torre Argentina | 53 | 30 min | Free from street; walkways ≈ €5 | 10 min walk |
| Pyramid of Cestius | 52 | 20 min | Free | 38 min walk |
| Appian Way | 49 | 3 h | Free | 7.3 km |
| Domus Aurea | 49 | 1 h 15 min | ≈ €18, with VR ≈ €26 | 18 min walk |
| Mouth of Truth | 49 | 20 min | Donation ≈ €2 | 15 min walk |
| Baths of Caracalla | 48 | 1 h 15 min | ≈ €8 | 32 min walk |
| Catacombs of Rome | 48 | 1 h 30 min | ≈ €10–12 with guide | 20 min walk |
| Ara Pacis | 47 | 1 h | ≈ €13–15 | 24 min walk |
| Theatre of Marcellus | 47 | 20 min | Free | 10 min walk |
| Vatican Museums | 44 | 3 h | ≈ €25 | 2.7 km |
| Capitoline Museums | 43 | 2 h 30 min | ≈ €15–19.50 | 6 min walk |
| Baths of Diocletian | 42 | 1 h | Basilica free; museum ≈ €10–12 | 24 min walk |
| Basilica of San Clemente | 39 | 1 h | Upper free; excavations ≈ €10–12 | 23 min walk |
| Imperial Fora | 38 | 1 h | Free from the street; museum ≈ €13–15 | 3 min walk |
| Testaccio | 38 | 2 h | Free | 40 min walk |
| Palazzo Massimo | 34 | 2 h | ≈ €10–12 combined ticket | 23 min walk |
| Ostia Antica | 31 | 3 h | ≈ €12–18 | 22.7 km |
| Hadrian's Villa | 29 | 3 h | ≈ €12–15 | 24.6 km |
The Imperial Fora on foot
From Piazza Venezia to Trajan's Column and Trajan's Market, then along Via dei Fori Imperiali to the Colosseum.
- Piazza Venezia20 min · Free
- 3 min walk from the previous stopTrajan's Columnyou are here15 min · Free
- 3 min walk from the previous stopImperial Fora1 h · Free from the street; museum ≈ €13–15
- 12 min walk from the previous stopColosseum2 h · ≈ €18
4 places · about 3 h 53 min with walks · 18 min on foot in total
Nearby and on the way
How to do it right
- Only the lower turns are visible — bring binoculars.
- Victory halfway up divides the story in two.
- Floodlit after dark.
- It's on the way from Piazza Venezia to the Colosseum.
Questions
Where is Trajan's Column?
In Trajan's Forum at the start of Via dei Fori Imperiali, 5 minutes from Piazza Venezia.
How tall is Trajan's Column?
About 30 m for the shaft, about 35 m with the pedestal.
What do the reliefs show?
Trajan's Dacian campaigns — marches, camp and bridge building, river crossings — in about 2,600 figures.
When was Trajan's Column built?
It was dedicated in AD 113.
Can you go inside Trajan's Column?
No, the internal 185-step staircase is closed to visitors.
Whose statue is on top?
St Peter's, since 1587; originally a statue of Trajan.
Does it cost anything to see?
No, it's free to view from the street.
Have you been? Was it worth your time?
1 — no, 5 — absolutely
Your vote counts towards the YesGo score.
Sources and fact-check
- English Wikipedia, Trajan's Column
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