steel has bound the carvings with chasing, so that the column, unshaken on its firm foundation below, might set its foot, placing it on the circular base. And splendor smiled throughout the foundations of the whole temple, when the column was set on the well-polished base, just as when a white cloud is adorned by the reddening rays of the newly rising sun from the east. Thus indeed they surrounded half the circle all around with four columns; and the other half they encircled with another four columns and fashioned a lovely stone tunic around the beneficent grotto. And in the four columns observing three spaces between, these too he crowned with metals from the Holy City bending them slightly, winding around the beautiful stone; for it was fitting for Peter also to nod assent to the holy name, crowning the beautiful, pure floor of the hall. And in the last space he placed a well-fitted door, gently rounded, from where a man comes up to the foundation of the grotto, dedicated to the sacred books. And you will notice that all the features of the grotto are similar, both toward the Garamantian South and to the Arimaspian wind, in columns and foundation and enclosure. But for the doors the skilled men did not set one place, but one somewhere to the west, and they fixed the other to the east; the western one toward the North, and the southern gate watches for Phaethon. And the enclosures did not stand of equal height with the fixed columns, but some rise above the graceful foundation just enough to hide the men of the grotto in its depths. And the eight columns with their deeply-carved capitals rise up from the enclosure, even if both have established a firm base of equal span on a single foundation of the building. and with their gold-inlaid capitals they gleam all around, flashing blessedly, like the golden-gleaming disk of the sun shooting its rays upon the cliffs. And a wooden circular rim from above crowned all the projecting capitals with a circular adornment, so as to yoke together with a single band the columns that had been bound, even if each is separate from the other; upon which you will find fixed trees with fire-colored clusters, flashing with the poured silver, seeing the flower of fire. And yet the shoot did not run astray wherever it might chance, but it holds up in order, equal to a many-rimmed cone, heavy with flashes of light. and from the wide-circling ring, ever stealing away, it creeps up sharply to the end. There you will notice a beautiful terminating girdle, everywhere colored with sapphire dust and wreathed around with golden leaves of ivy. And towards the house of Zephyr and to the wing of burning Eurus they fixed two silver crosses on the rim here and there, where a nail, curving at its tip, holds together countless lights of torches by their fastenings, twisting the shape of a round, well-bent crook.

With so many paths around it is the ambo made glorious; for they named this place thus, to be ascended by divine paths, where the people stretch their overseeing eyes, hearing the undefiled mysteries of the god-fearing word. Nor indeed did they idly place just a piece of stone for the steps, but one may see fine fibers poured over the silver; and they dye the covering purple, like a sea-blossoming shell. and on the unworn stones the stone-cutter roughened the sharp spine of the steps that receive men, holding an unswerving support for the feet, lest some downward path, seizing a traveler who has slipped, should lead him unsteady down from on high to the ground. Thus indeed, in order, by successive paths, one stepping on the stone recedes from another, as much as one leaping up might plant his foot in turn. And as an island rises up in the swells of the sea, intricate with ears of corn and clusters of vines and a flourishing meadow and well-wooded cliffs; and sailing past it, travelers count it blessed, pasturing the pains of their sea-worn care; so in the middle parts of the immense hall the upright ambo, fortified with stones, appears, intricate with a meadow of stones and the beauty of its art. Truly, it did not stand completely separate in the middle of the space, similar to the sea-girt character of islands; but rather it seems like some sea-washed land, which an isthmus drives as a projection through the gray swell to the middle seas, and holding it fast, bound from one starting-point, prevented it from being seen as a true island; and it, running out into the sea-streams, fastened the isthmian cable of a coastal hill. such is this place to behold; for a long passage runs through, rising up from the last eastern step,

γλυφάνοισι χάλυψ ἔσφιγξε τορείης, ὄφρα κεν ἀστυφέλικτον ἀρηρότι νειόθι κίων ἴχνος ἐφιδρύσειε βαλὼν περιηγέϊ βωμῶι. ἀγλαΐη δ' ἐγέλασσεν ὅλου κατ' ἐδέθλια νηοῦ, κίονος ἱδρυθέντος ἐϋξέστωι ἐπὶ βωμῶι, οἷον ὅτ' ἠελίοιο νέον περάτης ἀνιόντος λευκὸν ἐρευθομένηισι νέφος ποικίλλεται αὐγαῖς. Οὕτω μὲν πισύρεσσι περισταδὸν ἥμισυ κύκλου κίοσιν ἀμφεβάλοντο· τὸ δ' ἥμισυ κίοσιν ἄλλαις τέτρασι κυκλώσαντες ἐτορνώσαντο χιτῶνα λάϊνον ἱμερόεντα πέριξ εὐεργέος ἄντρου. κίοσι δ' ἐν πισύρεσσι μεταίχμια τρισσὰ δοκεύων, καὶ τάδε τοῖς Ἱερῆς πόλιος θρίγκωσε μετάλλοις βαιὸν ἐπιγναμφθέντα καλὸν περὶ λᾶαν ἑλίσσων· ἔπρεπε γὰρ καὶ πέτρον ἐς ἱερὸν οὔνομα νεύειν καλὸν ἀκηρασίοιο πέδον στέψαντα μελάθρου ὑστατίωι δ' ἐνέθηκε θύρην εὐπηγέα χώρωι, ἠρέμα γυρωθεῖσαν, ὅθεν κατ' ἐδέθλιον ἄντρου εὐϊέροις βίβλοισιν ἀνειμένος ἔρχεται ἀνήρ. σχήματα δὲ σπήλυγγος ὁμοίια πάντα νοήσεις, ἔς τε Νότον Γαράμαντα καὶ εἰς Ἀριμασπὸν ἀήτην κίοσι καὶ κρηπῖδι καὶ ἕρκεϊ. τοῖς δὲ θυρέτροις οὐχ ἕνα χῶρον ἔθεντο δαήμονες, ἀλλὰ τὸ μέν που ἑσπέριον, τὸ δ' ἔπηξαν ἑώϊον· ἑσπέριον μὲν πρὸς Βορέην, νοτίη δὲ πυλὶς Φαέθοντα δοκεύει. ἕρκεα δ' οὐκ ἰσόμετρα πεπηγόσι κίοσιν ἔστη, ἀλλὰ τὰ μὲν χαρίεντος ὑπερτέλλουσιν ἐδέθλου ὅσσον ἀποκρύπτειν ὑπὸ κεύθεσιν ἀνέρας ἄντρου. οἱ δὲ βαθυγλύπτοισι καρήασι κίονες ὀκτὼ ἕρκεος ἐξανέχουσι, καὶ εἰ βάσιν ἔμπεδον ἄμφω ἰσοτενῆ κρηπῖδι μιῆι στήσαντο δομαίηι. χρυσεοκολλήτοις δὲ περιστίλβουσι καρήνοις ὄλβια μαρμαίροντες, ἴσα χρυσαυγέϊ δίσκωι ἠελίου προβλῆτας ὀϊστεύοντος ἐρίπνας. Πάντα δ' ὑπερτέλλοντα καρήατα κυκλάδι κόσμωι δουρατέη στεφάνωσε περίδρομος ὑψόθεν ἄντυξ, ὥς κεν ἐπιζεύξειε μιῆι στροφάλιγγι δεθέντας κίονας, εἰ καὶ ἕκαστος ἀπόκριτός ἐστιν ἑκάστου· ἧς ἔπι πυρσοκόρυμβα πεπηγότα δένδρεα δήεις, ἀργυρέων στράπτοντα χύδην πυρὸς ἄνθος ὁράμνων. οὐ μὴν ἧι κε τύχηισιν ἀπόπλανος ἔδραμεν ὄρπηξ, ἀλλ' ἀνέχει κατὰ κόσμον ἴσος πολυάντυγι κώνωι, βεβριθὼς σελάεσσιν. ἀπ' εὐρυπόροιο δὲ κύκλου αἰὲν ὑποκλέπτων ἐπὶ λοίσθιον ὀξὺς ἀνέρπει ἔνθα δὲ τερμιόεντα καλὸν ζωστῆρα νοήσεις, πάντοθι σαπφείροιο καταχρωσθέντα κονίηι καὶ χρυσέοις κισσοῖο περιστεφθέντα πετήλοις. πρὸς δὲ δόμον Ζεφύροιο καὶ ἐς πτερὸν αἴθοπος Εὔρου δοιοὺς ἐγκατέπηξαν ἐπ' ἄντυγος ἔνθα καὶ ἔνθα σταυροὺς ἀργυρέους, ὅθι μυρία φάεα πυρσῶν ἅμμασιν ἀκροέλικτος ὁμιλαδὸν ἧλος ἐέργει, γυρὸν ἐϋγνάμπτοιο καλαύροπος εἶδος ἑλίσσων.

Τόσσα μὲν ἀμφικέλευθος ἔχων φαιδρύνεται ἄμβων· τόνδε γὰρ οὕτω χῶρον ἐφήμισαν ἀμβατὸν οἴμαις θεσπεσίαις, ὅθι λαὸς ἐπίσκοπον ὄμμα τιταίνει εἰσαΐων ἄχραντα θεουδέος ὄργια μύθου. Οὐδὲ μὲν οὐ βάθροισιν ἐτώσιον ἔνθεσαν αὕτως τμῆμα λίθων, λεπτὰς δὲ κατ' ἀργεννοῖο χυθείσας ἶνας ἐσαθρήσει τις· ἴσον δ' ἁλιανθέϊ κόχλωι νήδυμα πορφύρουσιν. ἐπ' ἀτρίπτοισι δὲ πέτροις ἀνδροδόκων ἀκμῆτα ῥάχιν τρηχύνατο βάθρων λαοτόρος, στήριγμα ποδῶν ἀμετάτροπον ἴσχων, μή τις ὀλισθήσαντα καταιβάτις οἶμος ὁδίτην ὑψόθεν ἁρπάξασα κατ' οὔδεος ἄστατον ἄξηι. οὕτω μὲν κατὰ κόσμον ἐπασσυτέρηισι πορείαις λᾶας ἐπεμβαίνων ὑποχάζεται ἄλλος ἀπ' ἄλλου, ὅσσον ἀναθρώσκων τις ἀμοιβαδὸν ἴχνος ἐρείσηι. Ὡς δὲ θαλασσαίοισιν ἐν οἴδμασι νῆσος ἀνίσχει, δαιδαλέη σταχύεσσι καὶ ἀμπελόεντι κορύμβωι καὶ θαλερῶι λειμῶνι καὶ εὐδένδροισιν ἐρίπναις· τὴν δὲ παραπλώοντες ἐπολβίζουσιν ὁδῖται, ἄλγεα βουκολέοντες ἁλικμήτοιο μερίμνης· οὕτω ἀπειρεσίοιο κατ' ἔνδια μέσσα μελάθρου λάεσι πυργωθεὶς ἀναφαίνεται ὄρθιος ἄμβων, δαιδαλέος λειμῶνι λίθων καὶ κάλλεϊ τέχνης. ναὶ μὴν οὐδ' ὅγε πάμπαν ἀπόκριτος ἐς μέσον ἔστη χῶρον, ἁλιζώνοισιν ὁμοίιος ἤθεσι νήσων· ἀλλ' ἄρα μᾶλλον ἔοικεν ἁλιρροθίωι τινὶ γαίηι, ἣν πολιοῦ προβλῆτα δι' οἴδματος ἰσθμὸς ἐλαύνει μεσσατίοις πελάγεσσι, μιῆς δ' ἀπὸ δέσμιον ἀρχῆς ὀχμάζων ἀνέκοψεν ἀληθέα νῆσον ὁρᾶσθαι· ἡ δὲ θαλασσαίοισιν ἐπιπροθέουσα ῥεέθροις ἴσθμιον ἀγχιάλοιο καθήψατο πεῖσμα κολώνης. τοῖος ἰδεῖν ὅδε χῶρος· ἀφ' ὑστατίου γὰρ ὀρούσας ἀντολικοῦ βαθμοῖο πολὺς διανίσσεται αὐλών,