To get the level space for their great areas, it was needful to cut away a whole spur of the Quirinal, excavating to a depth equal to the height of Trajan’s Column (128 feet). On entering this precinct, if one has been marveling before, it is right to be astounded now. First there comes the _Forum Trajani_ proper, a square of most imposing size, with lofty porticoes, semi-circular at the ends; and in the center stands a remarkable equestrian statue of the imperial founder himself. Then there is the vast _Basilica Ulpia_, the third great court house of the city, which spreads lengthwise across the northwestern boundary of this forum. It is 300 feet long, 185 feet broad, and five lines of pillars divide it into four separate halls for different kinds of business; in fact it is really a finer building than the older Basilica Julia. Going through this enormous but very open structure, we come to a second smaller plaza, and here rises one of the noblest sights of Rome--a monument that will draw the admiration of all ensuing ages--the _Column of Trajan_ itself. The bas-reliefs telling in picturesque detail the whole story of the Dacian Wars, the 2500 human figures executed with infinite fidelity and care, wind spirally from the top of the 18 foot pedestal clear to the summit. This last is crowned by a colossal bronze-gilt statue of Trajan looking down upon the sculptured record of his military glory. [Illustration: AN IMPERIAL FORUM, NEAR THE COLUMN OF TRAJAN: restoration after Von Falke.] This column is, perhaps, the worthiest monument of the whole imperial age.[144] The marvels of Trajan’s forum-system, however, are not exhausted. North and south of the Column are two fine buildings of moderate size; these are the _Bibliothecæ_, the two public “Libraries of Trajan,” one Latin, one Greek--containing on the whole the finest collections of books in Rome; and directly facing the Column and the Libraries across another open area of considerable extent is the _Temple of Trajan_, where the priests daily offer their sacrifice to the deified manes of the terror of Dacia and of Parthia. =240. The Park System of the Campus Martius: the Pantheon.=--These exhaust for the moment the structures we can survey around the fora: and it were well to stop lest sheer confusion may follow. With time, however, we could wander after the throngs again northwestward along “Broadway” past the great porticoes and fine shops of the Sæpta Julia, and saunter about the great park system of Campus Martius.