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to suffer. For they were forced 17.31 to have intercourse with men they by no means desired. And often, having brought the bride down from the bridal chamber, with no explanation she sent the bridegroom away unwedded, saying only this 17.32 with a short temper, that she displeased her. Which thing she did to many others, and to Leontius, who was a referendarius in rank, and Saturninus, a relative of Hermogenes the former Magister, in the case of his betrothed. For this Saturninus had a certain maiden as his betrothed, his cousin's daughter, a free-born and respectable girl, whom her father Cyril had betrothed 17.33 to him after Hermogenes had already departed this life. And when their bridal chamber had been set up, she arrested the bridegroom, and he was led to the other bridal chamber, and he married, wailing and 17.34 lamenting, the daughter of Chrysomallo. Now this Chrysomallo had long ago been a dancer and later a courtesan, but at that time she was living in the Palace with another Chrysomallo and with Indaro. 17.35 For instead of the phallus and the pastimes in the theatre, affairs were managed in this way. 17.36 But Saturninus, after sleeping with the bride and finding her to be deflowered, reported to one of his intimates 17.37 that he had not married an untouched girl. And when this came to Theodora, she ordered her attendants to lift him up in the air, as if he were putting on airs and puffing himself up over something that did not concern him, like little boys who go to a schoolmaster's, and having him flogged severely on the back, she warned him not to be a babbler. 17.38 And yet what things she did to John the Cappadocian has been told in the previous account. These things were done by her because she was angry with the man, not for the wrongs he did against the state (and here is the proof: for of those who later did more terrible things to the subjects, she did this to no one), but because in other matters he dared to go straight against the woman and slandered her to the emperor, so that she came very near 17.39 to being at war with her husband. For of the causes, as I indicated, it is necessary for me here especially to state the truest ones. 17.40 And when she imprisoned him in Egypt after he had suffered all the things which have been related by me concerning him, not even so did she receive any satisfaction from the man's punishment, but searching for false witnesses against him, she never let up. 17.41 And four years later she managed to find two of the Green factionaries in Cyzicus, who were said to be of those who had risen up against the bishop. 17.42 And she got around them with flattery and words and threats, so that one of them, taking fright and being lifted up by hopes, 17.43 attributed the pollution of the murder to John. But the other by no means decided to go against the truth, although he was so racked by torture that 17.44 he was expected to die at any moment. For this reason, she was unable by any means to use this pretext to destroy John, but she cut off the right hands of these two young men, of the one because he was by no means willing to bear false witness, and of the other so that the plot 17.45 might not become completely obvious. And while these things were being done so publicly in the market-place, Justinian pretended to understand nothing at all of what was being done. 18.1 But that he was not a human being, but some demon in human form, as has been said, one might prove by weighing the magnitude of the evils which he did 18.2 to mankind. For in the excessiveness of the deeds done, 18.3 the power of the doer also becomes manifest. To state, therefore, the exact number of those destroyed by him would not ever be possible, it seems to me, for any of all men, 18.4 but only for God. For one could more easily, I think, count all the sand than the number of people this emperor destroyed. But counting over the vast extent of land which has chanced to be left desolate of inhabitants, I say that myriads of myriads of myriads have perished. 18.5 For Libya, extending over so great a territory, has been so depopulated that for a man travelling a long way to meet another man 18.6 is both difficult and a noteworthy event. And yet of the Vandals who originally took up arms there, there happened to be eighty thousand, and of their women and children and 18.7 servants who could guess the number? But of the Libyans in the cities

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πάσχειν. ἀνδράσι γὰρ 17.31 ξυνιέναι οὐδαμῆ ἐθελούσιαι ἠναγκάζοντο. πολλάκις δὲ καὶ τὴν νύμφην ἐκ τῆς παστάδος ἀποβιβάσασα λόγῳ οὐδενὶ ἀνυμέναιον τὸν νυμφίον ἀφῆκε, τοῦτο μόνον 17.32 ξὺν ἀκροχολίᾳ εἰποῦσα, ὅτι δὴ αὐτὴν ἀπαρέσκοι. ὅπερ ἄλλους τε πολλοὺς ἔδρασε καὶ Λέοντα, ὅσπερ ῥεφερενδάριος ἦν τὴν τιμὴν, καὶ Σατορνῖνον, τὸνἙρμογένους τοῦ μαγίστρου γεγονότος ἐπὶ μνηστῇ. τούτῳ γὰρ τῷ Σατορνίνῳ ἦν τις ἀνεψιαδῆ παρθένος μνηστὴ, ἐλευθέριος καὶ κοσμία, ἥνπερ οἱ Κύριλλος ὁ πατὴρ κατηγ17.33 γύησενἙρμογένους τοῦ βίου ἤδη ἀπολυθέντος. πεπηγυίας τε αὐτοῖς τῆς παστάδος τὸν νυμφίον καθεῖρξεν, ἔς τε τὴν ἑτέραν παστάδα ἤχθη, ἔγημέ τε κωκύων καὶ 17.34 οἰμώζων ὅσον τὴν Χρυσομαλλοῦς παῖδα. Χρυσομαλλὼ δὲ αὕτη πάλαι μὲν ὀρχηστρὶς ἐγεγόνει καὶ αὖθις ἑταίρα, τότε δὲ ξὺν ἑτέρᾳ Χρυσομαλλοῖ καὶἸνδαροῖ ἐν Παλα17.35 τίῳ τὴν δίαιταν εἶχεν. ἀντὶ γὰρ τοῦ φαλλοῦ καὶ τῆς ἐν θεάτρῳ διατριβῆς τῇδε διῳκοῦντο τὰ πράγματα. 17.36 ξυγκαταδαρθὼν δὲ ὁ Σατορνῖνος τῇ νύμφῃ καὶ διαπεπαρθενευμένην εὑρὼν ἔς τινα τῶν ἐπιτηδείων ἐξήνεγ17.37 κεν ὅτι δὴ οὐκ ἄτρητον γήμαι. ὅπερ ἐπεὶ ἐς Θεοδώραν ἦλθε, τοὺς ὑπηρέτας ἐκέλευεν ἅτε ἀποσεμνυνόμενόν τε καὶ ὀγκωθέντα οὐδὲν αὐτῷ προσῆκον, μετέωρον αἴρειν, οἷα τὰ ἐς γραμματιστοῦ φοιτῶντα παιδία, ξαίνουσά τε κατὰ τῶν νώτων πολλὰς ἀπεῖπεν αὐτῷ μὴ φλυάρῳ εἶναι. 17.38 Οἷα μέντοι καὶἸωάννην τὸν Καππαδόκην εἰργάσατο ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν λόγοις ἐρρήθη. ἅπερ αὐτῇ διαπέπρακται τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ χαλεπαινούσῃ, οὐχ ὑπὲρ ὧν ἐς τὴν πολιτείαν ἡμάρτανε (τεκμήριον δέ· τῶν γὰρ ὕστερον δεινότερα ἐς τοὺς ὑπηκόους ἐργασαμένων οὐδένα τοῦτο πεποίηται), ἀλλ' ὅτι τά τε ἄλλα τῇ γυναικὶ καταντικρὺ ἐτόλμα ἰέναι καὶ αὐτὴν ἐς τὸν βασιλέα διέβαλλεν, ὥστε αὐτῇ καὶ τὸν ἄνδρα ἐκπεπολεμῶσθαι 17.39 παρ' ὀλίγον ἐλθεῖν. τῶν γὰρ αἰτιῶν, ὅπερ ὑπεῖπον, ἐνταῦθά μοι μάλιστα τὰς ἀληθεστάτας ἀναγκαῖον 17.40 εἰπεῖν. ἡνίκα τε αὐτὸν ἐπ' Αἰγύπτου καθεῖρξε πεπονθότα ὅσα μοι ἀμφ' αὐτῷ προδεδήλωται, οὐδ' ὥς τινα ἔλαβε τῆς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου κολάσεως κόρον, ἀλλὰ ψευδομάρτυρας ἐπ' ἐκείνῳ διερευνωμένη οὐδέποτε ἀνίει. 17.41 τέτρασι δὲ ἐνιαυτοῖς ὕστερον Πρασίνους εὑρέσθαι δύο τῶν ἐν Κυζίκῳ στασιωτῶν ἴσχυσεν, οἵπερ τῶν τῷ ἐπι17.42 σκόπῳ ἐπαναστάντων ἐλέγοντο εἶναι. καὶ αὐτοὺς θωπείαις τε καὶ λόγοις καὶ ἀπειλαῖς περιῆλθεν, ὥστε ἅτερος μὲν κατορρωδήσας καὶ ταῖς ἐλπίσιν ἐπαρθεὶς 17.43 τὸ μίασμα τοῦ φόνου ἐς τὸνἸωάννην ἀνήνεγκεν. ὁ δὲ δὴ ἕτερος τῆς ἀληθείας ἀπ' ἐναντίας ἐλθεῖν οὐδαμῆ ἔγνω, καίπερ οὕτως ἐκ τῆς βασάνου καταταθεὶς, ὥστε 17.44 ὅτι δὴ καὶ τεθνήξεται αὐτίκα μάλα ἐπίδοξος ἦν. διὸ δὴ τὸν μὲνἸωάννην τούτῳ δὴ τῷ παραπετάσματι διαχρήσασθαι οὐδεμιᾷ μηχανῇ ἔσχε, τοῖν δὲ νεανίαιν τούτοιν χεῖρας τὰς δεξιὰς ἔτεμε, τοῦ μὲν ὅτι ψευδομαρτυρεῖν οὐδαμῆ ἤθελε, τοῦ δὲ ὅπως μὴ ἐπιφανὴς 17.45 ἡ ἐπιβουλὴ ἐς τὸ πᾶν γένηται. τούτων δὲ οὕτως ἐν τῷ δημοσίῳ πρασσομένων τῆς ἀγορᾶς, Ἰουστινιανὸς ἐποιεῖτο τῶν πρασσομένων μηδενὸς τὸ παράπαν ξυνεῖναι. 18.1Ὅτι δὲ οὐκ ἄνθρωπος, ἀλλὰ δαίμων τις, ὥσπερ εἴρηται, ἀνθρωπόμορφος ἦν, τεκμηριώσαιτο ἄν τις τῷ μεγέθει σταθμώμενος ὧν εἰς τοὺς ἀνθρώπους κακῶν 18.2 ἔδρασεν. ἐν γὰρ τῷ ὑπερβάλλοντι τῶν πεπραγμένων 18.3 καὶ ἡ τοῦ δεδρακότος δύναμις ἔνδηλος γίνεται. τὸ μὲν οὖν μέτρον ἐς τὸ ἀκριβὲς φράσαι τῶν ὑπ' αὐτοῦ ἀνῃρημένων οὐκ ἄν ποτε, μοὶ δοκεῖ, τῶν πάντων τινὶ 18.4 ἢ τῷ θεῷ δυνατὰ εἴη. θᾶσσον γὰρ ἄν τις, οἶμαι, τὴν πᾶσαν ψάμμον ἐξαριθμήσειεν ἢ ὅσους ὁ βασιλεὺς οὗτος ἀνῄρηκε. τὴν δὲ χώραν ἐπὶ πλεῖστον διαριθμούμενος, ἥνπερ ἔρημον τῶν ἐνοικούντων ξυμπέπτωκεν εἶναι, μυριάδας μυριάδων μυρίας φημὶ ἀπολωλέναι. 18.5 Λιβύη μὲν γὰρ ἐς τοσοῦτον διήκουσα μέτρον οὕτως ἀπόλωλεν ὥστε ὁδὸν ἰόντι πολλὴν ἀνδρὶ ἐντυχεῖν 18.6 χαλεπόν τε καὶ λόγου ἄξιον εἶναι. καίτοι Βανδίλων μὲν τῶν ὅπλα ἀρχὴν αἰρομένων ἐνταῦθα μυριάδες ὀκτὼ ἐτύγχανον οὖσαι, γυναίων δὲ καὶ παιδαρίων καὶ 18.7 θεραπόντων αὐτῶν τίς ἂν εἰκάσειε μέτρον; Λιβύων δὲ τῶν ἐν ταῖς πόλεσιν