Column at the end of the Appian Way

The elegant Roman column, one of the most important symbols in the Salentinian city, dominates the port of Brindisi from its height of  19 metres , at the top of a long staircase. The column is one of the two Roman columns built during the 2nd century, used as lighthouse and probably to indicate the place in which the old Appian Way ended.

The two Roman Columns, built using Turkish marble, were connected by a solid bronze beam placed between the two capitals to support a golden light, which had to show the sailors the entrance to the port. The second column, of which only one of the drums is left, fell down in 1528 and nowadays it is in Sant’Oronzo square in Lecce.

The other column, which consists of eight drums, has a Corinthian capital with acanthus leaves, heads of Gods and Goddesses and eight tritons. According to the most likely hypothesis, this monument was built in 110 AC by the imperator Trajan, to indicate the detour of the Appian Way from Benevento to Canosa, Ruvo and Egnazia, ending in Brindisi.