Georgius Pachymeres, Chronicle II

the southern sea, but for days, until they, having run ashore at Rhaedestus, should fall into the hands of whomever they met. And these things were done after some time, but as the sequence of the narrative allows, it has been set forth beforehand here. But we must go on to what follows. Nevertheless, this must also be added concerning them; for it is connected with what has been set forth beforehand. For when eight 76 years after this had passed, and his own people were seeking by sending an embassy to the emperor and promising great things, if only he were released from prison and could come to them, the ruler for his part kept this matter in suspense, and with words of management he neither refused outright nor did he consent completely. Learning of such delays, that man devises a plan most wicked rather than wise. For neighboring the palace, shut up where the emperor also dwelt, he decided to set fire to the buildings, as if doing something noble by taking on such a risk. And so late at night, having prepared dry wood, as if to warm himself (for this was done in winter, around the middle of Skirophorion, which is December), having secured the doors of the prison from within, he sets a fire, which indeed, spreading very quickly for the season, caught fire and was visible to those outside. And what had happened also reached the emperor, who was still awake. And he sent men to fight not him but the fire, to extinguish it. And a certain eunuch among the others, 77 named Karbas, arriving first, was beating on the doors as if to open them; but since it was not possible to open them as they were secured, they were forcing the doors with axes, along with their very bolts and locks. But the eunuch had not yet properly set foot on the threshold, when that man from within met him with a sword, and thrusts it into his entrails, and again another and a third time on top of these, and the one struck was immediately a corpse. And immediately many rushed in, but the royal axe-bearing guard, being indignant at what happened, mercilessly kill him with their axes, and him, who had been raised in such luxury, having been cast out somewhere near the so-called silver (gate), they bury in a somewhat random and haphazard way. But so much for these things, as an example of human affairs, and that it is better to trust in shadows rather than in these things.

28. And there came to pass at that time also a certain event, terrible to see and terrible to hear, for which one person might give one cause and another person another, but no one, I think, would make a correct judgment, even if he should labor much in investigating; "For who has known the mind of the Lord, and who has reached the outermost limits of His wisdom?" says Job. But on the other hand, to say or even to suppose that such things happen in divine matters contrary to probability, such as we will indeed relate, "borders 78 on madness," says Pindar. But for me, having once set myself to the reporting of what has happened, even if it has happened contrary to what is likely, it would not be right to excuse myself from what I might say. For truthfulness gives confidence. And I would suffer nothing worse, I think, from my hearers by speaking than what I might perhaps do to myself by not speaking. For from that course, one might get the reputation of suppressing everything concerning what happened then out of self-love, and indeed of attributing to some one thing the fact that those things were not done in a proper and safe manner; but from this, if nothing more, at least by willingly passing over what I believe happened by divine providence, the truth of the history would be sullied. Therefore let this also be said along with the other things, bringing indeed an awe of God's providence, but with reference to what it might pertain, whether past or future, this is, as is likely, unknown. The day therefore named for cheese was then at hand, and custom called the one officiating in the church; and this was to fill the sacred pyx as full as possible with the presanctified offerings, according to the need of the appointed liturgies. When therefore 79 the offering of the sacred sacrifice had been completed, and the pyx was being opened in which the sacred breads were to be placed, one was immediately found inside among the presanctified offerings, which indeed someone seeing it conjectured to be one of those three, which was to be offered on Holy and Great Thursday, it having happened then, as has been said, that the rites of the sacred sacrifice were not completed because of

νότων τὸ πέλαγος, ἀλλ' ἐφ' ἡμέ ραις, μέχρις ἂν ἐκεῖνοι κατὰ τὴν Ῥαιδεστὸν ἐξοκείλαντες ὑπὸ χεῖρα γένοιντο τοῖς τυχοῦσι. Καὶ ταῦτα μὲν μετὰ χρόνους πέπρακται, τῆς δ' ἀκολου θίας διδούσης τοῦ λόγου ἐνταῦθα προανατέτακται. ἡμῖν δὲ ἰτέον πρὸς τὰ ἑξῆς. ἔμπης δὲ προσθετέον καὶ τοῦτο σφίσιν· ἐπικοινωνεῖ γὰρ τοῖς προανατεταγμένοις. ὀγδόου γὰρ ἐκ τούτου 76 χρόνου διανυσθέντος, καὶ τῶν οἰκείων αὐτοῦ δὲ ζητούντων τῷ πρεσβεύεσθαι παρὰ βασιλέα καὶ καθυπισχνεῖσθαι τὰ μεγάλα, εἰ μόνον ἀνεῖτο τῶν φυλακῶν καὶ πρὸς αὐτοὺς γένοιτο, ὁ μὲν κρα τῶν ἀνήρτα τὰ περὶ τούτου, καὶ λόγοις οἰκονομίας οὔτε πάμπαν ἀνήνατο οὔτε μὴν κατένευεν ἐς τὸ παντελές. τὰς γοῦν τοιαύτας ἀναβολὰς μανθάνων ἐκεῖνος βουλὴν βουλεύεται κακίστην μᾶλλον ἢ συνετήν. ἐγγειτονῶν γὰρ τῶν ἀνακτόρων ἐγκεκλεισμένος ὅπου δὴ καὶ βασιλεὺς ᾤκει, ἔγνω πῦρ ἐνιέναι τοῖς οἴκοις, ὡς δή τι γενναῖον ποιούμενος τὸ εἰς τοιοῦτον ἀναρρίπτειν κίνδυνον. καὶ δὴ νυκτὸς ἀωρὶ κάγκανα ξύλα ἑτοιμασάμενος, ὡς δῆθεν θερμαί νοιτο (χειμῶνος γὰρ ἐπράττετο ταῦτα, περί που Σκιρροφοριῶ νος τὰ μέσα, ὅς ἐστιν ὁ ∆εκέβριος), τὰς θύρας τῆς εἱρκτῆς ἀσφαλισάμενος ἔνδοθεν πῦρ ἐνίησιν, ὃ δὴ καὶ τῆς ὥρας κατατα χῆσαν ἐξῆπτε καὶ τοῖς ἐκτὸς δῆλον ἦν. φθάνει δὲ καὶ τὸν βασιλέα ἀγρυπνοῦντα ἔτι τὸ γεγονός. καὶ ὃς τοὺς ἀμυνουμένους οὐκ ἐκεῖνον ἀλλὰ τὸ πῦρ εἰς κατάσβεσιν ἀπέπεμπε. καί τις τῶν ἄλ λων ἐκτομίας Κάρβας λεγόμενος προφθάσας ταῖς θύραις προσή 77 ραττεν ὡς ἀνοίξων· ὡς δ' οὐκ ἦν ἀνοίγειν ἠσφαλισμένας, ἀξί ναις τὰς θύρας αὐτοῖς μοχλοῖς καὶ βαλανάγραις ἐξετίνασσον. οὔπω δὲ καλῶς ὁ ἐκτομίας ἔφθη οὐδοῦ ἐπιβεβαώς, κἀκεῖνος ἔν δοθεν τῇ μαχαίρᾳ προσυπαντᾷ, καὶ τοῖς σπλάγχνοις ταύτην ἐμ βάλλει καὶ αὖθις ἄλλην καὶ τρίτην ἐπὶ ταύταις, καὶ νεκρὸς ὁ πληγεὶς αὐτίκα. καὶ εὐθὺς πολλοὶ μὲν ἐσερύησαν, τὸ δὲ πελεκυ φόρον τάγμα βασίλειον, ἀγαιόμενοι τῷ συμβάντι, πελέκεσιν ἐκεῖνον ἀνηλεῶς κατακτείνουσι, καὶ τὸν οὕτως ὑπὸ τρυφῇ τρα φέντα ἔξω που ἐκβεβλημένον κατὰ τὴν ἀργυρᾶν λεγομένην εἰκαίως πως καὶ ὡς ἔτυχε θάπτουσιν. ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν ἐς τοσοῦτον, εἰς δεῖγμα τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων πραγμάτων, καὶ ὅτι σκιαῖς μᾶλλον ἢ τούτοις πιστεύειν ἄμεινον.

28. Ἐπηλήθευσε δὲ τοῖς τότε τετελεσμένοις καί τι συμ βὰν φοβερὸν μὲν ἰδεῖν φοβερὸν δ' ἀκοῦσαι, οὗ δὴ καὶ ἄλλος ἄλλο τι ἂν αἰτιάσαιτο καὶ ἄλλο ἄλλος, οὐδεὶς δ' ἂν οἶμαι εὔστο χον θείη τὴν κρίσιν, κἂν πολλὰ κάμοι προσερευνῶν· τίς γὰρ ἔγνω νοῦν κυρίου, εἰς δὲ τὰ ἔσχατα τῆς σοφίας αὐτοῦ τίς ἀφί κετο; φησὶν ὁ Ἰώβ. τὸ δ' αὖ ἐκ τοῦ παρεικότος ἐπὶ τοῖς θείοις τοιαῦτα γίνεσθαι λέγειν ἢ καὶ δοξάζειν οἷα δὴ καὶ ἐροῦμεν, μα 78 νίαισιν ὑποκρέκει, φησὶ Πίνδαρος. ἐμοὶ δ' ἅπαξ ἐμαυτὸν κα θεικότι εἰς ἀγγελίαν τῶν γενομένων, ἤν που καὶ παρὰ τὸ εἰκὸς γέγονεν, οὐ δικαίως ἂν καὶ παραιτητέον εἴη ὅ τι λέγοιμι. νέμει γὰρ τὸ θαρρεῖν ἡ ἀτρέκεια. καὶ οὐδὲν χεῖρον, οἶμαι, ὑπὸ τῶν ἀκουσόντων ἂν πάθοιμι λέγων ὧν ἐμαυτὸν ἴσως δράσαιμι μὴ εἰ πών. ἐκεῖθεν μὲν γὰρ δόξαν ἀποίσαιτ' ἄν τις τοῦ πάντ' ἐπέχειν ἐκ φιλαυτίας τοῖς τότε ξυμβᾶσι, καί γ' ἀνάγειν πρὸς ἕν τι τὸ μὴ κατὰ τρόπον ἐκεῖνα καὶ τἀσφαλὲς πεπρᾶχθαι· ἐντεῦθεν δὲ ἀλλ' εἰ μή τί γε πλέον, τῷ γοῦν ἑκόντα παρατρέχειν τὸ ξυμπε σὸν ἐκ δαιμονίου οἶμαι προνοίας ῥυπαίνοιτ' ἂν ἡ καθ' ἱστορίαν ἀλήθεια. τῷ τοι καὶ τοῦτο πρὸς τοῖς ἄλλοις λεγέσθω, δεῖμα μὲν φέρον θεοῦ προνοίας, πρὸς ὅ τι δὲ φέροι ἢ παρελθὸν ἢ ἐσό μενον ὡς εἰκὸς ἀγνοούμενον. Ἡμέρα μὲν οὖν τῆς τυρινῆς κυριώνυμος τότ' ἐφίστατο, ἐκάλει δὲ τὸν ἐπ' ἐκκλησίας ἱερουργοῦντα τὸ σύνηθες· τὸ δ' ἦν τὸ προηγιασμέναις ἀναφοραῖς τὸ ἱερὸν πυξίον ἐς ὅ τι μάλιστα ἐμπιπλᾶν κατὰ χρείαν τῶν τεταγμένων λειτουργιῶν. ἐπεὶ γοῦν 79 τετέλεστο μὲν ἡ τῆς ἱερᾶς θυσίας ἀναφορά, ἀνεπτύσσετο δὲ τὸ πυξίον ἐφ' ᾧ τοὺς ἱεροὺς ἄρτους τεθῆναι, εὕρηταί τις εὐθὺς ἐν τὸς τῶν προηγιασμένων ἀναφορά, ἣν δὴ καὶ εἴκασέ τις ὁρῶν μίαν τῶν τριῶν ἐκείνων εἶναι, ἣν καὶ τῆς ἁγίας καὶ μεγάλης τε τράδος μέλλουσαν ἀναφέρεσθαι, συμβὰν τότε, καθὼς λέλεκται, μὴ τὰ τῆς ἱερᾶς τελεσθῆναι θυσίας διὰ