Grand Tour Bronze Model of Trajan’s Column Lamp W/ Emperor Finial

Details

Description

A finely cast Grand Tour bronze model of Trajan’s Column, mounted on its original stepped marble plinth and later adapted … Read more A finely cast Grand Tour bronze model of Trajan’s Column, mounted on its original stepped marble plinth and later adapted as a table lamp, the work retaining its rare original bronze emperor figure, now repurposed as the lamp’s finial. The column—an iconic monument of Imperial Rome completed in AD 113—was a principal destination for 18th- and 19th-century travelers undertaking the Grand Tour, and souvenir reductions such as this one were prized study objects for aristocratic collectors, draftsmen, and early antiquarians.

The bronze shaft is crisply rendered with the continuous spiral frieze narrating Trajan’s Dacian campaigns, the reliefs retaining sharply defined battle scenes, standards, fortifications, and marching Roman troops. The capital is ringed with a delicate beaded torus above a bold egg-and-dart molding, surmounted by the modelled balcony and cylindrical drum that would historically support the statue of Trajan (later replaced with St. Peter). Here, that classical figure survives separately—depicted in military dress, holding a globe and long spear—remarkably preserved and now mounted atop the lamp harp as the finial.

The square base is enriched with high-relief military trophies, fasces, armor, trumpets, banners, and captured Dacian arms, flanked by a pair of eagles supporting the circular plinth of the column. The stepped plinth is carved from dark, mottled marble showing attractive age and mineral veining. The bronze retains an untouched historical patina with appropriate wear and oxidation, consistent with 19th-century casting.

Converted to electricity in the early–mid 20th century, the lamp retains its period socket, and the wiring should be evaluated by a professional for modern use.

Measures:
26.5 h (to top of socket); 39 h (to top of finial); 6.625 w × 6.5 d. See less