Trajan and the Senate: Iconographic messages of Monuments and Coins

Dio Cassius described the dream Trajan had before he became the emperor ; the Senate appeared, looking as he was rendered in art, as an old man with long beard, and prophesied him his great future bidding Trajan to always hold the Senate in the highest esteem. Dio is the only source reporting Trajan`s dream, so we have no way of corroborating the story. It might be true, found in ancient sources, or it might be a literary convention or topos of personified state appearing in dream or vision to the great men. In both cases its message is clear: good relations between emperor and the Senate are to everyone`s advantage. Analysis of the monuments and coins, before Trajan, during Trajan`s rule, and after Trajan`s death show that personified Senate was regularly present on the monuments showing state occasions, always near the emperor, even at times when relations between the Senate and some emperors were extremely disturbed. The same monuments and written sources as well, show that Trajan was true to his dream and always kept close relations with the Senate, although all the power was, in fact, in his hands.