First, please watch this Smarthistory video about the Column of Trajan:
Second, paraphrase the information from this video to explain the Column to someone who doesn’t know about it. Where is it located? Why was it built? Whom does it commemorate (honor) and how? How did this sculpture reinforce Roman identity as authoritative and dominant?
Third, watch the following videos about monuments and memory:
Fourth, choose a post-Roman monumental sculpture of a famous person and look it up online. (I want you to focus on human forms, so the statue should honor a person or people.) Choose something you feel a connection to, positive or negative. If you’re from a non-American culture, it’s a great idea to choose a monument from your culture. Talk about what that monument expresses about its subect and its culture. Incorporate at least one insight by Magdalena Gross or Adam Foreman from one of the videos about monument and memory. Is the monument showing us the excellence of a leader and/or a nation? Is it showing off an accomplishment? What collective values does the monument express? How do they do this?
Fifth, does your monument use any strategies similar to Trajan’s Column? Does it “pump up” its hero or heroes in a similar way or a different, opposing way? Which monument commemorates its subject more effectively and why?