This rare example of a drum with relief carvings is from the 2nd century. Its surface features an episode from Greek mythology known as the Gigantomachy; a war fought between the Gigantes and the gods of Olympus. After the Olympians imprisoned the Titans underground, Gaia gave birth to the giants and sent them to fight the gods to avenge the Titans. However, a prophecy stated that the giants could only be defeated by a mortal, so the gods summoned Heracles to fight on their behalf.
Four gods and four giants are depicted on this high relief drum in the SSM Collection of Archeological Artifacts. The goddess Athena, holding a shield and a spear in one hand, pulls a giant by the hair with the other. The naked male figure standing behind her holds the head and hair of another giant, who, with raised arms, attempts to free himself. Behind them, there is a struggle between a standing naked male god and a giant. At the end of the relief is a naked female figure sitting with her knees bent, trying to neutralize a giant by pressing her foot into its heel. In these scenes, the giants are also naked, shown as snakes below the knees.
Another example of a column drum with relief carving is from the 6th century, found in the ancient city of Kyzikos and exhibited in the Istanbul Archaeological Museums. A column drum from the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, which also depicts mythological figures and is dated to the Hellenistic period, is in the collection of the British Museum.