Triumphal COLUMN, a column erected among the ancients in honour of a hero, and decorated with various
kinds of crowns, corresponding to the number of his achievements in battle. Each crown had its particular name, as vallaris, which was fitted with spikes, in memory of his having forced a palisade; muralis, adorned with little turrets, or battlements, for having mounted an assault; navalis, of prows and beaks of vessels, for having vanquished at sea; obsidionalis, or graminalis, of grass, for having raised a siege; ovans, of myrtle, which expressed an ovation, or minor triumph; and triumphalis, of laurel, for a grand triumph.