until he plants his foot on the silver-wrought screen, striking the long base of the sanctuary enclosure. On both sides it is separated by walls. Yet they have not placed high panels on these enclosures, but only as much as to mark out the navel-high belt of a man standing beside it. From there, turning back, the man of good tidings, holding aloft the golden book, passes through. And as the multitude presses, in mystic honor of the immaculate God, to rest their lips and hands on the holy book, the unspeakable waves of the moving throng break around. And indeed, the space is stretched out like an isthmus buffeted on both sides, guiding straight to the sacred sanctuary of the table the man who leaps down from the high-towering ambo. And on either side they have fenced the whole path with green Thessalian stone. And a great meadow beneath the stones brings lovely charm to the eyes. And beside each Thessalian slab stands another pillar, as it were, of equal height, not appearing with rounded shafts; a man skilled in lines might say that the pillars follow the shape of a very long, unequal-sided cube. Here the stone-cutters, having joined a harmony of Molossian stone, wedged one stone into another in alternation. And from a Phrygian hill the stone-hewing craftsman also cut these stones. And there, casting your eyes that graze on these delights, in one place you might see the beautiful stone drawing its snake-like veins all around, and with well-bent courses they make the belly swell; and side by side, stretched out, a fiery and a silver-hued and a colour midway between both, some alternating trail, twisting upwards, rolls its coil in a crooked, crawling course; and in another place you will perceive moon-like and star-like impressions of the stone, of a different nature in their markings. But also, upon the outstretched lips of the enclosure, they have fitted another long slab, born of the same fair-sloped cliff, so that below, set in the foundations of the base, there might be a firm footing of Thessalian stone, and above, held fast by another stony bond. But also the sides themselves, a bond holding them beneath four-sided pillars, plants its unwavering, immovable foundation upon the pavement. And as when someone, on a multi-coloured Tyrian robe on high, casting everywhere running threads of gold, in one place winds the fitted ornament around the entire hem, and in another around the beautiful opening of the robe, and in yet another has crowned the opening for both hands; and from every side, a smooth splendour surrounds the spring-coloured threads of the robe, and the gleam of the golden thread, blossoming with one richness after another, raises beauty upon beauty; so the artist of varied work, casting the gold-gleaming radiance of the sacred stone upon the green metals, found how to kindle a brighter flashing from both. And at the eastern end, beside the sacred enclosures of the table, they have cut off the isthmus, so that they might make a swifter passage of the way for wayfarers passing by. Such are the works that my sceptered one of glorious gifts raises for the King God. And in addition to his many-crowned gifts, he has also dedicated the much-hymned temple as a gleam of his city-protecting serenity, so that by God-receiving counsel he might establish a living offering to the Adorner of the world, Christ the King of all. But you, be gracious, be gracious, all-radiant majesty of the immaculate Trinity, to the city of Rome and its inhabitants and its emperor and its lovely-to-behold temple.

εἰσόκεν ἀργυρέην περὶ δικλίδα ταρσὸν ἐρείσηι, μηκεδανῆι κρηπῖδι θυηπόλον ἕρκος ἀράσσων. τοίχοις δ' ἀμφοτέρωθε διείργεται. οὐ μὲν ἐκείνοις ἕρκεσιν ὑψιτενεῖς ἔβαλον πλάκας, ἀλλ' ὅσον ἀνδρὸς ὀμφάλιον ζωστῆρα παρισταμένοιο χαράξαι. ἔνθεν ὑποτροπάδην χρυσέην εὐάγγελος ἀνὴρ βίβλον ἀερτάζων διανίσσεται. ἱεμένης δὲ πληθύος, ἀχράντοιο θεοῦ κατὰ μύστιδα τιμήν, χείλεα καὶ παλάμας ἱερὴν περὶ βίβλον ἐρεῖσαι, κύματα κινυμένων περιάγνυται ἄσπετα δήμων. καί ῥ' ὁ μὲν ἀμφιπλῆγι τιταίνεται εἴκελος ἰσθμῶι χῶρος, ἀπιθύνων πρὸς ἀνάκτορα σεμνὰ τραπέζης ἄνδρα καταθρώσκοντα βαθυκρήμνου περιωπῆς· Θεσσαλικῆι δ' ἑκάτερθεν ὅλην χλοερώπιδι πέτρηι ἀτραπὸν ἐφράξαντο. πολὺς δ' ὑπὸ λάεσι λειμὼν ὄμμασιν ἱμερόεσσαν ἄγει χάριν. ἀμφὶ δ' ἑκάστηι Θεσσαλικῆι λάϊγγι παρίσταται οἷά τις ἄλλος κίων ἰσοτενής, περιηγέσιν οὔ τι κυλίνδροις εἰδόμενος· φαίη τις ἀνὴρ γραμμῆισι μεμηλὼς σχῆμα κύβου μεθέπειν περιμήκεος οὐκ ἰσοπλεύρου κίονας. ἁρμονίην δὲ Μολοσσίδος ἐνθάδε πέτρης λαοτόροι ζεύξαντες, ἀμοιβαδὸν ἄλλον ἐν ἄλλωι πέτρον ἐνεσφήκωσαν. ἀπὸ Φρυγίης δὲ κολώνης λαοτύπος καὶ τούσδε λίθους ἐτμήξατο τέκτων. ἔνθα δὲ βουκολέοντα μεληδόνας ὄμματα βάλλων πῆι μὲν ἴδοις καλὴν ὀφιώδεα σύρματα πέτρην ἀμφιπεριπλάζουσαν, ἐϋγνάπτοις δὲ πορείαις νήδυμα κυμαίνουσι· παρ' ἀλλήλας δὲ ταθείσας πυρσὴν ἀργυφέην τε καὶ ἀμφοτέρων τινὰ μέσσην χροιὴν ἀμβολάδην τις ἀμοιβαδὸν ὁλκὸς ἑλίσσων ἀγκύλον ἑρπυστῆρι δρόμωι σπείρημα κυλίνδει· πῆι δὲ σεληνήεντα καὶ ἀστερόεντα νοήσεις γραμμαῖς ἀλλοπρόσαλλα φύσει σφρηγίσματα πέτρης. ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐκταδίοις ἐπὶ χείλεσιν ἕρκεος ἄλλην τῆς αὐτῆς γεγαυῖαν ἐϋπρήωνος ἐρίπνης μηκεδανὴν λάϊγγα καθήρμοσαν, ὄφρα κεν εἴη νειόθι μὲν κρηπῖδος ἐνιδρυνθεῖσα θεμείλοις πέτρης Θεσσαλικῆς βάσις ἔμπεδος, ὑψόθι δ' ἄλλωι ἅμματι πετρήεντι κατάσχετος. ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὰς πλευρὰς τετρατόμοις ὑπὸ κίοσι δεσμὸς ἐέργων ἄτροπον ἀστυφέλικτος ἐπ' οὔδεϊ πυθμένα πήσσει. ὡς δ' ὅτε τις Τυρίοιο πολύχροος ὑψόθι πέπλου νήματα χρυσοέλικτα περίδρομα πάντοθι βάλλων πῆι μὲν ὅλην περὶ πέζαν ἀρηρότα κόσμον ἑλίσσει, πῆι δὲ καλὸν πέπλοιο περὶ στόμα, πῆι δέ γε χειρῶν ἀμφοτέρων ἔστεψε διήλυσιν· ἀγλαΐη δὲ πάντοθεν εὐλείμων ἐαρόχροα νήματα πέπλου ἀμφὶς ἔχει, χρυσέου δὲ μίτου σέλας ἄλλον ἐπ' ἄλλωι ὄλβον ἐπανθίζων περὶ κάλλεϊ κάλλος ἐγείρει· οὕτω ποικιλοεργὸς ἀνήρ, χλοεροῖσι μετάλλοις μαρμαρυγὴν ἱεροῖο βαλὼν χρυσαυγέα πέτρου, ἀμφοτέροις ἀμάρυγμα φαάντερον εὗρεν ἀνάψαι. ἀντολικὸν δ' ἐπὶ τέρμα, παρ' ἕρκεα σεμνὰ τραπέζης, ἰσθμὸν ἀποτμήξαντο, διήλυσιν ὄφρα κελεύθου ὠκυτέρην τεύξωσι παρερχομένοισιν ὁδίταις. Τοῖα μὲν ἀγλαόδωρος ἐμὸς σκηπτοῦχος ἐγείρει ἔργα θεῶι βασιλῆϊ. πολυστέπτοις δ' ἐπὶ δώροις καὶ σέλας ἀστυόχοιο ἑῆς ἀνέθηκε γαλήνης νηὸν ὕπερ πολύυμνον, ὅπως θεοδέγμονι βουλῆι ἔμπνοον ἱδρύσειε γέρας κοσμήτορι κόσμου, Χριστῶι παμβασιλῆϊ. σὺ δ' ἵλαος ἵλαος εἴης, παμφαὲς ἀχράντου τριάδος σέβας, ἄστεϊ Ῥώμης καὶ ναέταις καὶ ἄνακτι καὶ ἱμεροδερκέϊ νηῶι.