Roman sculpture from Augustus to Constantine . ically uninfluencedby tradition, but was—to a greater extent than evenWickhoff has represented it—the outcome of the spatialand illusionist methods. The necessity for unrolling asequence of res gestcc provoked a return from spatial tosurface composition. But the apparent coincidencebetween the continuous style and the old narrativemethods was the result of natural tendencies and not ofconscious imitation or revival. The great battle scene formerly in Trajans Forummust have forcibly driven home to the student thesalient principles of the continuous
Roman sculpture from Augustus to Constantine . ically uninfluencedby tradition, but was—to a greater extent than evenWickhoff has represented it—the outcome of the spatialand illusionist methods. The necessity for unrolling asequence of res gestcc provoked a return from spatial tosurface composition. But the apparent coincidencebetween the continuous style and the old narrativemethods was the result of natural tendencies and not ofconscious imitation or revival. The great battle scene formerly in Trajans Forummust have forcibly driven home to the student thesalient principles of the continuous style ; the subse-quent analysis and digression may have served toestablish wherein this style differs from similar oldermethods. It is now time to approach the most exten-sive, if not the most grandiose, of its manifestations. On the great column which bears the name of Trajansunknown artists unfolded the great storied rotidus thattells the exploits of his two Dacian campaigns. Owingto the shape of the monument, it is difficult to study. THE COLUMN OF TRAJAN 171 the detail of the reliefs in situ, for, unlike Raphael andhis friends, we can no longer climb on to the roofs ofthe houses which in his day closely surrounded thecolumn. At the same time, the difficulty of studyingthe original is exaggerated as regards general must be gained from the column itself. With thehelp of glasses, at any rate, a great deal can be made outboth from the surrounding upper level of the street, andfrom the Forum below. Thus only can we appreciatethe profoundly decorative effect of the sculptured spiral,the wonderful variety of the pattern, its mobility underthe varying light, the perennial novelty of its interestand yet its grave subordination to the architecturaleffect. Piranesi has caught the very spirit of thedesign in his famous etchings. Moreover, those who donot fear to exchange for one moment antiquarianaccuracy for artistic truth, will do well to run quicklythrough the
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