Detail of musicians and cavalrymen.
On all of the major Trajanic reliefs, of which this is a prime illustration, particular attention is paid to arms and armour; it was evidently important that the different types of troops depicted were recognisable and accurately represented. There is much more use of the drill on this relief than on most of the Column of Trajan or the Arch at Benevento for the simple reason that the relief here is much deeper and the scene more dynamic - the drill helps to heighten the contrast, the chiaroscuro, of the scene which adds to this sense of dynamism.
