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The Column of Phocas

The 44 ft (13.5 m) honorary column of Phocas is the last addition to the Forum, having been erected in honour of the Byzantine emperor Phocas in AD 608. The precise reason for this honour is unknown. Though Phocas had visited Rome and formally handed the great building of the Pantheon to the pope. This column hence might be a demonstration to mark papal gratitude.