Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1907-08-01
MAKES FIND IN ROME.
Scientist Discovers the Hidden Maui
solum of TraJan's Parents.

scientist Discovers the Hidden Maui
solum of Tralan's Parents.
Inc CONNIE ndatore Boni recently
delivered an interesting lecture in
the rooms of the Royal society on
the subject of Trajan's column and
The meaning of its dedicatory inscrip-
ton, "Ad Declarandvm. Qvantae AL
utudinis None ct Locvs Tantis Oner.
lDys Sit Egestvs," says the Academy
Archaeologists have believed on
the strength of the inscription tina.
that the column was raised to marx
the height Of a hill which had been
removed in order to level the
forum and that it probably never con.
tanned sepulchral chamber. II
would appear to have been easy to
set this latter doubt at rest before
now but 1t has remained To the com.
mendatore to discover in the pedestal
ioophole similar to those which
light the spiral staircase which did
not serve for that purpose. BY this
very simple indication he found in
the inner vestibule of the column a
door which had been walled I'D and
covered with plaster He cut away
the masonry and discovered within
TWO chambers. In the inner chamber
were the remains OF a funeral table.
and above 1t, at opposite ends. two
noies drilled in the walls. The COM
mendatore concludes that to these
were fixed stanchions which support.
ed Two urns which rested on the
table. An inscription preserved In
the Vatican Lapidarium that Hadrian
erected temple to his parents
which stood close to the column.
The commentators seems, therefore
to have fairly established as a fact
that the column was erected as a
mausoleum over the ashes of Traian
and Plotina. the parents Of Hadrian.
AS regards the inscription, the
commentators has, we hold, arrived
at conclusion still more convincing
but. We think, merely negative. He
Dug pits near the column and
trench across the whole valley which
contains the Forum. At the level
where the substrata of the supposed
nil would have lain he found in their
place remains of early imperial and
republican work, such as foundations
and drains. In particular. he found
traces OF wall built of blocks of tufa
exactly similar to the still existing
Iortincations on the slopes of the
Quirinal. 1t is evident that these
are the remains of the Notifications
which Livy mentions as having been
built after the retreat Of the Gauls
In the fourth century. The existence
of any hill occupying this spot Is
therefore abundantly disproyed with.
out the commentators further argu.
ment, which we do not consider would
De very conclusive in itself. He has
discovered that the column is so ex-
actly 100 feet high that the length of
the Roman foot has been more &C.
curately fixed in accordance with II.
He argues against the probability of
a hill existing of such accurate meas.
urement. Surely a column centenaria
being stereotype, might well have
been chosen to mark the removal Of
a hill of about that height We can
not accept the commendatore's posi-.
tive explanation of the inscription as
very convincing. He considers it TO
refer to the height and proportions OF
the buildings on the level of the
Forum Ulpium end on the slope OF
the neighb0ring hill. We cannot fol.
low him in extracting this meeting
from the Latin words. which remain
to us as little explicable as before.