Constantinople stands in an earthquake zone. The Roman columns, patterned on the column of Trajan, were hollow, with a stairwell inside. This made them very vulnerable to earth movements. The column of Arcadius is one of those that did not survive, despite attempts by the Ottoman government to reinforce it with iron bands. The massive base and the bottom of the stair do still exist, jammed in between two modern dwellings. But the column itself is gone.
However drawings do exist. Today I came across one made in 1599 by Melchior Lorck, a Danish diplomat who was present in the city as part of a German delegation. He used his time to make drawings of what he saw there. These are online at Leiden.
One of his prospects of Constantinople – includes a depiction of the column of Arcadius. I’ve excerpted the area around the column.
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Wonderful to get a glimpse of the past.