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having taken [it], which I just mentioned, and having cleared away its damaged parts, he rebuilt it without any delay, and brought the river back again into its former course, which they call its bed. So these things proceeded in this way. 5.5.14 The river Cydnus flows through the middle of the city of Tarsus. And at other times it never appears to have done anything unpleasant, but once it happened to work irreparable 5.5.15 harm from a cause such as this. The time of year was around the spring solstice; and a strong south wind, suddenly blowing, melted all the snows with which, having fallen in the winter season, Mount Taurus 5.5.16 had been almost entirely covered. So streams of water flowed together from every side of the cliffs there, and all the ravines sent forth torrents, and both the lower slopes and the foothills of the Taurian mountains were drenched 5.5.17 with many springs. So the Cydnus, having become swollen with these waters, since they poured into it as it was nearby, and at the same time heavy rains also having occurred, flooding all the suburbs of Tarsus, as many as happened to be turned toward the south, it immediately made them utterly disappear; and roaring, it went against the city, and carrying away the bridges, which were short, it submerged all the market-places and overflowed the streets and, flooding the houses and 5.5.18 the upper stories, it advanced to a great height. For a night and a day the whole city was in such danger and turmoil, and only at last did this river, little 5.5.19 by little abating, return again to its accustomed course. When the Emperor Justinian heard these things, he devised the following. First, he prepared another bed for the river before the city, so that, being split there and dividing its stream to either side, having become roughly half its size, it might proceed toward Tarsus. 5.5.20 Then, having made the bridges much wider, he rendered them too strong to be forced by the Cydnus in flood. And in this way he brought it about that the city should be inhabited free from fear and danger for all time. 5.6.1 So the affairs in Cilicia for the Emperor Justinian turned out in this way. But in Jerusalem he dedicated a sanctuary to the Mother of God, 5.6.2 to which no other can be compared. The local inhabitants call the sanctuary the New Church; what sort of thing it is, I shall declare, after first saying this much, that this city is for the most part hilly, but the hills are not of earth, but rise up in rough and precipitous terrain, laying out the streets in the manner of a ladder from the 5.6.3 upright to the sloping. Now all the other buildings of the city happen to be on a single level, either built on a hill, or on the flat ground according to the open expanse of the land, but this sanctuary alone 5.6.4 is not in this fashion. For the Emperor Justinian commanded it to be on the most prominent of the hills, indicating what sort it should be in other respects and what its breadth and 5.6.5 length should be. And the hill did not suffice according to the emperor's command for the need of the work, but a fourth part of the sanctuary was left toward the south wind and the rising sun, where it is customary for the priests to perform the rites. 5.6.6 Therefore those to whom this work was entrusted devised the following. Laying the foundations at the lowest extremities of the flat ground, they made a structure rising up together with the 5.6.7 cliff. And when they came to the top at the very summit, placing vaults on top of the walls, they joined 5.6.8 the structure to the other ground of the sacred precinct. And in this way the temple is in part founded on solid rock, and in part is suspended, the power of the emperor having contrived another large space 5.6.9 for the hill. And of this building, 5.6.10 the stones are not of such a size as we are familiar with. For the craftsmen of this work, struggling against the nature of the site and laboring at a height to match the cliff, disregarding all customary methods, proceeded to extraordinary and altogether unknown practices. 5.6.11 Therefore, quarrying out immense stones from the mountains which rise to the sky in the areas before the city, and dressing them

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λαβών, ἧσπερ ἐπεμνήσθην ἀρτίως, καὶ αὐτῆς τὰ πεπονθότα περιελὼν ἀνῳκοδομήσατο οὐδεμιᾷ μελλήσει, τόν τε ποταμὸν αὖθις ἐς τὴν πρόσθεν ὁδὸν ἐπανήγαγεν, ἣν κοίτην καλοῦσι. ταῦτα μὲν οὖν τῇδε κεχώρηκε. 5.5.14 Κύδνος δὲ ποταμὸς κατὰ πόλιν μέσην Ταρσὸν φέρεται. καὶ χρόνον μὲν τὸν ἄλλον οὐδὲν ἄχαρι διαπεπραγμένος φαίνεται πώποτε, ἅπαξ δὲ αὐτῷ ξυνηνέχθη ποτὲ τὰ ἀνή5.5.15 κεστα διεργάσασθαι ἐξ αἰτίας τοιᾶσδε. τοῦ μὲν καιροῦ ἀμφὶ τροπὰς ἐαρινὰς ἦν ἡ ὥρα· νότος δὲ ἄνεμος ἐξαπιναίως ἐπιπνεύσας πολὺς τὰς χιόνας διέλυσε πάσας, αἷς δὴ χειμῶνος ὥρᾳ ἐπιπεσούσαις τὸ ὄρος ὁ Ταῦρος 5.5.16 ἐκεκάλυπτο σχεδόν τι ὅλον. ῥύακες οὖν ὑδάτων πανταχόθεν ξυνέρρεον τῶν ἐκείνῃ σκοπέλων, αἵ τε χαράδραι χειμάρρους ἀφίεσαν πᾶσαι, καὶ κρήναις πολλαῖς αἵ τε ὑπώρειαι καὶ οἱ πρόποδες ὀρῶν τῶν Ταυρείων κατάρ5.5.17 ρυτοι ἦσαν. τούτοις οὖν ὁ Κύδνος τοῖς ὕδασι κυματίας γεγενημένος, ἐπεὶ ἐς αὐτὸν ἐν γειτόνων ὄντα ἐπεσέβαλλον, ἅμα δέ οἱ καὶ ὄμβρων ἐπιγενομένων πολλῶν, τὰ μὲν Ταρσέων προάστεια πάντα, ὅσα πρὸς μεσημβρίαν τετραμμένα ἐτύγχανε, κατακλύσας εὐθὺς ἐξίτηλα τὸ παράπαν ἐποίει· ἐπὶ τὴν πόλιν δὲ μορμύρων ᾔει καὶ τὰς γεφύρας βραχείας οὔσας περιελὼν τάς τε ἀγορὰς συνεῖχεν ἁπάσας τάς τε ἀγυιὰς ὑπερέβλυζε καὶ τοῖς οἴκοις καὶ 5.5.18 ὑπερῴοις ἐπιπολάζων ἐπὶ μέγα ἐχώρει. νύκτα τε καὶ ἡμέραν ἡ πόλις ὅλη ἐν κινδύνῳ διαγέγονε καὶ σάλῳ τοιούτῳ, καὶ μόλις ἐν ὑστάτῳ ὁ ποταμὸς οὗτος κατὰ 5.5.19 βραχὺ ἀπολωφήσας ἐν τοῖς εἰωθόσι γέγονεν αὖθις. ἅπερ ἐπεὶ βασιλεὺς Ἰουστινιανὸς ἤκουσεν, ἐπενόει τοιάδε. πρῶτα μὲν ἑτέραν πρὸ τῆς πόλεως διεσκευάσατο τῷ ποταμῷ κοίτην, ὅπως ἐνταῦθα διασχιζόμενος ἑκατέρωθί τε μερίζων τὸν ῥοῦν κατὰ ἥμισυ γεγονὼς μάλιστα ἐπὶ Ταρ5.5.20 σὸν ἴοι. ἔπειτα δὲ τὰς γεφύρας παρὰ πολὺ εὐρυτέρας πεποιημένος κρείσσους ἀπειργάσατο εἶναι ἢ πλημμύροντι βιασθῆναι τῷ Κύδνῳ. ταύτῃ τε διεπράξατο φόβου καὶ κινδύνου ἐκτὸς ἐς πάντα τὸν χρόνον οἰκεῖσθαι τὴν πόλιν. 5.6.1 Τὰ μὲν οὖν ἐν Κίλιξιν Ἰουστινιανῷ βασιλεῖ ταύτῃ πη ἔσχεν. ἐν δὲ Ἱεροσολύμοις ἱερὸν τῇ θεοτόκῳ ἀνέ5.6.2 θηκεν, ᾧπερ ἄλλο εἰκασθῆναι οὐδὲν οἷόν τέ ἐστι. νέαν ἐκκλησίαν καλοῦσι τὸ ἱερὸν οἱ ἐπιχώριοι· ὅπερ δὴ ὁποῖόν ποτέ ἐστιν, ἐγὼ δηλώσω, τοσοῦτον ὑπειπών, ὡς ἡ πόλις ἥδε λοφώδης μέν ἐστιν ἐκ τοῦ ἐπὶ πλεῖστον, οὐ γεώδεις δὲ οἱ λόφοι εἰσίν, ἀλλ' ἔν τε τραχεῖ καὶ ἀποκρήμνῳ ἐπανεστήκασι, τὰς ἀμφόδους ἐν κλίμακος τρόπῳ ἀπὸ τοῦ 5.6.3 ὀρθίου ἐς τὸ πρανὲς κατατείνοντες. τὰ μὲν οὖν ἄλλα τῆς πόλεως οἰκοδομήματα ἅπαντα ἐφ' ἑνὸς χωρίου συμβαίνει εἶναι, ἢ ἐπὶ λόφου πεποιημένα, ἢ ἐν τῷ χθαμαλῷ κατὰ τὸ ἀναπεπταμένον τῆς γῆς, τοῦτο δὲ μόνον τὸ ἱερὸν 5.6.4 οὐ ταύτῃ πη ἔχει. ἐπέστελλε γὰρ αὐτὸ Ἰουστινιανὸς βασιλεὺς ἐν τῷ προὔχοντι γενέσθαι τῶν λόφων, δηλώσας ὁποῖον τά τε ἄλλα δεήσει καὶ τὸ εὖρος αὐτῷ καὶ 5.6.5 μῆκος εἶναι. οὐκ ἀπέχρησέ τε κατὰ τὴν βασιλέως ἐπίταξιν πρὸς τοῦ ἔργου τὴν χρείαν ὁ λόφος, ἀλλὰ τοῦ ἱεροῦ τὸ τεταρτημόριον ἀπελέλειπτο πρός τε ἄνεμον νότον καὶ ἀνίσχοντά που τὸν ἥλιον, ἵνα δὴ ὀργιάζειν τοῖς 5.6.6 ἱερεῦσι θέμις. διὸ δὴ ἐπενόουν τάδε, οἷς τὸ ἔργον τοῦτο ἐπέκειτο. ἀπορριψάμενοι τὰ θεμέλια εἰς γῆς τῆς ὑπτίας τὰ ἔσχατα, οἰκοδόμημα πεποίηνται συνεπανεστηκὸς τῷ 5.6.7 σκοπέλῳ. ἐπειδή τε ἄνω κατὰ τὴν ἀκρωνυχίαν ἐγένοντο, τῶν τοίχων καθύπερθε θόλους ἐνθέμενοι συνάπτουσι 5.6.8 τὴν οἰκοδομίαν τῷ ἄλλῳ τοῦ τεμένους ἐδάφει. ταύτῃ τε ὁ νεὼς πὴ μὲν ἐπὶ πέτρας ἰσχυρᾶς ἵδρυται, πὴ δὲ ᾐώρηται, τῆς τοῦ βασιλέως δυνάμεως μέγεθος ἄλλο ἐπι5.6.9 τεχνησαμένης τῷ λόφῳ. ταύτης δὲ δὴ τῆς οἰκοδομίας 5.6.10 οἱ λίθοι οὐ τοιοίδε εἰσὶ μέγεθος, ὁποίους ἴσμεν. πρὸς γὰρ τοῦ χωρίου τὴν φύσιν οἱ ἐπιδημιουργοὶ τοῦ ἔργου τοῦδε διαμαχόμενοι ὕψος τε ἀντιτεταγμένον τῷ σκοπέλῳ διαπονούμενοι, τῶν ξυνειθισμένων ὠλιγωρηκότες ἁπάντων ἐπὶ τὰ παράδοξα καὶ ὅλως ἀγνῶτα τῶν ἐπιτηδευ5.6.11 μάτων ἐχώρουν. πέτρας οὖν ὑπερμεγέθεις ἐκ τῶν ὀρῶν ὑποτεμνόμενοι, ἅπερ οὐρανομήκη ἐν τοῖς πρὸ τῆς πόλεως χωρίοις ἀνέχει, ξύσαντές