they met upon a very golden h[ea]d; but in the middle like a crown above [ ] the rim of the unhewn space, which art did not [make]. ]the form of the cross, navel-centered within the circle, is marked out in delicate mosaic, so that the Savior of the whole cosmos may save the ever-guarded temple. And around the base of the half-sphere, they artfully made forty arches of bright windows, from where the light of the soft-haired dawn is ferried. I am in awe as to what design our scepter-bearer fitted to the wide temple, how with the toil of a builder men, serving with skillful foundations, raised up with baked bricks the bound rims of the arches and the roof of the wide-coursed house. For a man of much counsel, proficient in skilled art, fashioned a woodless roof for the wide-roofed temple. For neither upon the Phoenician hill above Lebanon nor in the shady wood on the Alpine peaks did any Assyrian or Celtic woodcutter, striking tree-felling axes in the groves, consider any pine or fir sufficient to roof the house; nor did the groves of Daphne on the Orontes, nor the well-wooded slope of Patara grow a cypress which could thickly cover the roof of the immense temple. For the much-hymned emperor, what nature did not find to cover with tall trees, he covered with circles of stone. Thus over the four-pierced arches a well-helmeted, deep-bosomed covering is raised. Indeed, you might say you are stretching your wandering eye to the much-circled heaven. But towards the [shining] east and west you will notice nothing beneath the arches, but the whole a[ir] is spread out; and towards the sounding south and the unwetted region of the Bears a mighty wall stretches up to the chin of the well-rounded rim, and it shines, full of light, with four times two windows. And this wall is supported below by stone foundations; for beneath it six Hae[m]o[ni]an columns, like green emerald, have been set up as binders of the untiring sinews, where the place of the women's seats appears. And four columns fixed to the ground with great [ca]pitals support them under unshaken necessity, with golden hair hanging down with graces, the gleams of Thessalian stone; and they separate the central areas of the temple of beautiful dance from the foundations of the neighboring, very long portico. Never did they quarry such columns within the land of Molossis, high-crested, graceful, verdant, blooming with groves [of] variegated flowers. -But also in the middle of the portico itself, Anthemius of many devices set up four other columns, and with him Isidorus, having an all-wise mind; for both, serving the counsels of beauty-loving rulers, built the mighty temple; but in measures of length they are smaller than the nearer ones, yet from the same nurse they gleam with green blossoms. But these did not root their well-footed bases in a row one after another, but they are set upon the earth opposite one another, two by two; upon whose heads an arch, entwined with four-pierced chains, supported the back of the women's seats. And nearby is a gate towards the region of the north wind, directing the people to the undefiled baths, the purifications of human life, from which the soul-destroying, woeful weal of transgressions is driven away.

And on four columns in a row, here and there, delicate, Thessalian ones, towards twilight and dawn along the length of the portico winds the work of rollers, equal to half-circles, beside the well-built walls, perforated, they go through, spread out; towards the northern breeze they open up the binders of the double doors; and towards the southern wing, opposite the gates, well-made voids resembling some bridal chamber; and again towards light and night two other Haemonian columns and two from wave-washed Proconnesus, upright, high-crested, fixed very near the gates. But towards the shining east there is one gate, and towards the seat of black night the people proceed to a double-valved gate. You will find the southern portico also entirely similar to the northern one in its length, but this one has something more; for by a certain wall it guards a space set apart for the emperor of the Ausonians during the divinely crowned festivals. There my scepter-bearer, sitting on his customary throne, lent his ear to the sacred books. And one will notice that all things above are equal to those below, the women's portico on both sides

συνέκυρσαν ἐριχρύσοιο κ[αρή]νου· ἀλλὰ μέση στεφανηδὸν ἄνω[ ]ἄντυξ ἀσκαφέος χώροιο, τὸν οὐκ ἐ[ τέ]χνη. ]τύπος σταυροῖο μεσόμ[φα]λος ἔνδοθι κύκλου λεπταλέηι ψηφῖδι χαράσσεται, ὄφρα σαώσηι νηὸν ἀειφρούρητον ὅλου κόσμοιο σαωτήρ. σφαίρης δ' ἡμιτόμου περὶ πυθμένα πεντάκις ὀκτὼ εὐφαέων ἁψῖδας ἐτεχνήσαντο θυρέτρων, ὁππόθεν ἁβροκόμοιο σέλας πορθμεύεται ἠοῦς. Θάμβος ἔχω, τίνα μῆτιν ἐπήραρεν εὐρέϊ νηῶι ἡμέτερος σκηπτοῦχος, ὅπως δωμήτορι μόχθωι ἀνέρες, εὐτέχνοισιν ὑποδρήσσοντες ἐδέθλοις, πλίνθοις ὀπταλέηισιν ἀνεστήσαντο δεθείσας ἄντυγας ἀψίδων τε καὶ εὐρυπόρου σκέπας οἴκου. καὶ γὰρ ἀνὴρ πολύμητις, ἀνειμένος ἴδμονι τέχνηι, ἄξυλον εὐρόφοιο τέγος τεχνήσατο νηοῦ. οὐδὲ γὰρ οὐ Φοίνισσαν ὑπὲρ Λιβάνοιο κολώνην οὐδὲ μὲν Ἀλπείων σκοπέλων ἀνὰ δάσκιον ὕλην Ἀσσύριος δρυτόμος τις ἀνὴρ ἢ Κελτὸς ἀράσσων δενδροκόμοις βουπλῆγας ἐν ἄλσεσιν, οὔ τινα πεύκην, οὐκ ἐλάτην ἐνόησεν ἐπαρκέας οἶκον ἐρέψαι· οὐδὲ μὲν οὐ κυπάρισσον Ὀροντίδος ἄλσεα ∆άφνης, οὐ Πατάρων εὔδενδρος ἀνηέξησεν ἐρίπνη, ἥτις ἀπειρεσίοιο τέγος νηοῖο πυκάσσηι. καὶ γὰρ ἄναξ πολύυμνος, ἃ μὴ φύσις εὗρε καλύψαι δένδρεσι μηκεδανοῖσι, λίθων ἐκαλύψατο κύκλοις. οὕτω τετραπόροισιν ἐφ' ἁψίδεσσι καλύπτρη εὐπήληξ βαθύκολπος ἀείρεται. ἦ τάχα φαίης οὐρανὸν ἐς πολύκυκλον ἀλώμενον ὄμμα τιταίνειν. Ἀλλ' ἐπὶ [μὲν φαέθοντ]α καὶ ἕσπερον οὔτι νοήσεις ἁψίδων ὑπένερθεν, ὅλος δ' ἀναπέπτ[αται ἀ]ήρ· ἐς δὲ νότον κελάδοντα καὶ εἰς κλίσιν ἄβροχον ἄρκτων τοῖχος ἐρισθενέτης ἀνατείνεται ἄχρι γενείου ἄντυγος εὐτροχάλοιο, λέλαμπε δὲ τετράκι δοιαῖς πλησιφαὴς θυρίδεσσιν. ἐρήρεισται δ' ὅγε τοῖχος νειόθι λαϊνέοισιν ὑπ' ἴχνεσιν· ἓξ γὰρ ὑπ' αὐτῶι κίονες Αἱ[μ]ο[νι]ῆες ἴσοι χλοάοντι μαράγδωι ἀκαμάτων ξυνοχῆας ἀνεστήσαντο τενόντων, ἔνθα γυναικείων ἀναφαίνεται ἔνδια θώκων. τοὺς δὲ χαμαιπαγέες πίσυρες μεγάλοισι [κα]ρήνοις κίονες ὀχλίζουσιν ὑπ' ἀστυφέλικτον ἀνάγκην χρυσόκομοι χαρίτεσσι κατήορο[ι, ]ται Θεσσαλίδος πέτρης ἀμαρύγματα· μέσσα δὲ νηοῦ ἔνδια καλλιχόροιο διακρίνουσιν ἐδέθλων γείτονος αἰθούσης περιμήκεος. οὔ ποτε τοίους κίονας ἐτμήξαντο Μολοσσίδος ἔνδοθι γαίης, ὑψιλόφους, χαρίεντας, ἐύχλοας ἄλσεσι[ ἄνθεσι δαιδαλέοισι τεθηλότας. -Ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτῆς αἰθούσης κατὰ μέσσον ἐρείσατο τέσσαρας ἄλλους κίονας Ἀνθέμιος πολυμήχανος ἠδὲ σὺν αὐτῶι πάνσοφον Ἰσιόδωρος ἔχων νόον· ἀμφότεροι γὰρ καλλιπόνων βουλῆισιν ὑποδρήσσοντες ἀνάκτων νηὸν ἐδωμήσαντο πελώριον· ἀλλ' ἐνὶ μέτροις μήκεος ἐγγυτέρων μὲν ὀλίζονες, ἐκ δὲ τιθήνης τῆς αὐτῆς χλοεροῖσιν ἀποστίλβουσιν ἀώτοις. ἀλλὰ γὰρ οὐ στοιχηδὸν ἐπισχερὼ εὔποδας οὗτοι πυθμένας ἐρρίζωσαν, ἐφεδρήσσουσι δὲ γαίηι ἀντίοι ἀλλήλοισι δύω δυσίν· ὧν κατὰ κόρσης τετραπόροις σειρῆισιν ἐπειλιχθεῖσα κεραίη νῶτον ὑπεστήριξε γυναικείοισιν ἐδέθλοις. ἐγγύθι δ' ἔστι πύλη βορεώτιδος ἐς κλίσιν αὔρης, λαὸν ἀπιθύνουσα πρὸς ἀχράαντα λοετρά, ἀνδρομέου βιότοιο καθάρσια, τῶν ἄπο λυγρὴ σμῶδιξ ὠλεσίθυμος ἐλαύνεται ἀμπλακιάων.

Τέτρασι δ' ἐξείης ἐπὶ κίοσιν, ἔνθα καὶ ἔνθα, ἁβροῖς, Θεσσαλικοῖσι, πρὸς ἀμφιλύκην τε καὶ ἠῶ αἰθούσης κατὰ μῆκος ἑλίσσεται ἔργα κυλίνδρων ἡμιτόμοις ἀτάλαντα διοδμήτους παρὰ τοίχους, τρητά, διαστείχουσιν ἀνειμένα· πρὸς μὲν ἀήτην ἀρκτῶιον ξυνοχῆας ἀνακλίνουσι θυρέτρων διζυγέων· νότιον δὲ ποτὶ πτερόν, ἄντα πυλάων, εὐτύκτους κενεῶνας ἐειδομένους τινὶ παστῶι· πρὸς δὲ φάος καὶ νύκτα πάλιν δύο κίονας ἄλλους Αἱμονίους δοιούς τε περικλύστου Προκονήσου, στήμονας, ὑψιλόφους, πυλέων ἄγχιστα παγέντας. ἀλλ' ἐπὶ μὲν φαέθοντα πύλη μία, πρὸς δὲ κελαινῆς νυκτὸς ἕδος δισσὴν ἐπὶ δικλίδα λαὸς ὁδεύει. ∆ήεις καὶ νοτίην βορεώτιδι πᾶσαν ὁμοίην μηκεδανὴν αἴθουσαν, ἔχει δέ τι καὶ πλέον ἥδε· τείχει γάρ τινι χῶρον ἀποκρινθέντα φυλάσσει Αὐσονίων βασιλῆϊ θεοστέπτοις ἐν ἑορταῖς. ἔνθα δ' ἐμὸς σκηπτοῦχος ἐφήμενος ἠθάδι θώκωι μυστιπόλοις βίβλοισιν ἑὴν ἐπέτασσεν ἀκουήν. Ἶσα δὲ τοῖς ὑπένερθε καὶ ὑψόθι πάντα νοήσει θηλυτέρην αἴθουσαν ἐς ἀμφοτέρας τις