Foreground carvings The relief on the right side shows Trajan in the Forum Romanum, where he institutes a charitable organisation for orphans (known as the
alimenta). Trajan is seated on a podium in the middle of the Forum, together with a personification of
Italia carrying a child on her arm. The left relief shows the destruction of tax records in the presence of the emperor, probably Hadrian in 118, to the tune of 900 million sesterces. The wooden tablets with the tax records are carried forth and burned in the presence of the emperor, who is standing in front of the
Rostra. The practice of "fiscal pardon" had been carried out previously under Trajan following his victory in the
First Dacian War in 102.
Background carvings The backgrounds of both the right and left sides depict buildings on the Forum Romanum. On the right relief, depicted left to right, the buildings are: The
Ficus Ruminalis and the statue of
Marsyas; the
Basilica Julia; the
Temple of Saturn; the
Temple of Vespasian and Titus; and the Rostra (only one of which is visible). A part of the relief is missing, where the
Temple of Concord should have been. On the left, again from left to right: the speakers' platform in front of the
Temple of Divus Julius; the
Arch of Augustus; the
Temple of Castor and Pollux; the
Vicus Tuscus; the Basilica Julia; the Ficus Ruminalis and the statue of Marsyas. ==Further reading==