Of the Buildings of Justinian

by Procopius

He built another church in her honour in the place which is called the Fountain, where there is a thick grove of cypress trees, a meadow whose rich earth blooms with flowers, a garden abounding in fruit, a fountain which noiselessly pours forth a quiet and sweet stream of water, in short where all the surroundings beseem a sacred place. Such is the country around the church; but as for the church itself, it is not easy to describe it in fitting words, to form an idea of it in the mind, or to express it in language; let it suffice for me to say thus much of it, that in beauty and size it surpasses most other churches. Both these churches are built outside the city walls, the one at the place where the wall starts from the sea-shore, the latter close to what is called the Golden Gate, which is near the further end of the fortifications, in order that both of them might form impregnable defences for the city walls. Besides these, in the temple of Hera, now called the Hiereum, he erected a church in honour of the Virgin, which cannot easily be described.

In that part of the city which is called Deuteron[10] he built a noble and admirable church in honour of St. Anne, whom some think to have been the mother of the Virgin, and the grandmother of Christ; for God, in choosing to become man, subjected Himself to having grand-parents and a genealogy on His mother’s side like a man. Not very far from this church, in the last street of the city, there is a fine church built in honour of the martyr Zoe.

He found the church of the Archangel Michael[11] at Byzantium small, very dark, and quite unworthy of being dedicated to the archangel, having been built by one Senator, a patrician in former times, and in shape very like a small bedroom in a poor man’s house. Wherefore he razed it entirely to the ground, that no part of its former unseemliness might be left, and rebuilding it of a goodly size, in the manner which we now see, changed it into a building of wonderful beauty. This church is of a quadrangular form, its length apparently not greatly exceeding its width; of its sides, that which looks towards the east has at its extremities a thick wall constructed of a great mass of stones, but in the middle is set back, forming a recess, on each side of which the roof is supported by columns of variegated stone. The opposite wall, that towards the west, is pierced with doors opening into the church.

IV. His faith in the Apostles of Christ is testified in the following manner: In the first place he built the Church to SS. Peter and Paul, which did not exist before in Byzantium, close to the King’s palace, which was formerly called by the name of Hormisdas.[12] This was once his own private house; and when he became Emperor of the Romans, he made it look worthy of a palace by the magnificence of its buildings, and joined it to the other imperial apartments. Here also he built another church dedicated to the glorious saints Sergius and Bacchus,[13] and afterwards another church standing obliquely to it. These two churches stand, not facing one another, but obliquely towards one another, joined together, and vying one with another. They have a common entrance, are equal to one another in all respects, are surrounded by a boundary wall, and neither of them exceeds the other or falls short of it, either in beauty, size, or any other respect; for each alike reflects the rays of the sun from its polished marble, and is alike covered with lavish gilding and adorned with offerings; in one respect alone they differ, that the length of one is straight, whereas the columns of the other for the most part stand in a semicircle. They both have one portico at their vestibule, which from its great length is called Narthex.[14] The whole vestibule, the court, the inner doors from the court and the neighbourhood of the palace are alike common to both, and both these churches are so admirable that they form a great ornament to the entire city, and especially to the palace.

PLAN OF CHURCH OF SS. SERGIUS AND BACCHUS.

After this, out of his exceeding great reverence for all the Apostles,[15] he did as follows. In ancient times there was one church at Byzantium dedicated to all the Apostles, but through length of time it had become ruinous, and seemed not likely to stand much longer. Justinian took this entirely down, and was careful not only to rebuild it, but to render it more admirable both in size and beauty; he carried out his intention in the following manner. Two lines were drawn in the form of a cross, joining one another in the middle, the upright one pointing to the rising and setting sun, and the other cross line towards the north and the south wind. These were surrounded by a circuit of walls, and within by columns placed both above and below; at the crossing of the two straight lines, that is, about the middle point of them, there is a place set apart, which may not be entered except by the priests, and which is consequently termed the Sanctuary. The transepts which lie on each side of this, about the cross line, are of equal length; but that part of the upright line towards the setting sun is built so much longer than the other part as to form the figure of the cross. That part of the roof which is above the Sanctuary is constructed like the middle part of the Church of Sophia, except that it yields to it in size; for the four arches are suspended and connected with one another in the same fashion, the circular building standing above them is pierced with windows, and the spherical dome which overarches it seems to be suspended in the air, and not to stand upon a firm base, although it is perfectly secure. In this manner the middle part of the roof is built: now the roof over the four limbs of the church is constructed of the same size as that which I have described over the middle, with this one exception, that the wall underneath the spherical part is not pierced with windows. When he had completed the building of this Sanctuary, the Apostles made it evident to all that they were pleased and thoroughly delighted with the honour paid them by the Emperor; for the bodies of the Apostles Andrew, Luke, and Timothy, which had before this been invisible and altogether unknown, were then made manifest to all men, signifying, I imagine, that they did not reject the faith of the Emperor, but permitted him openly to behold them, to approach and to touch them, that he might gain from them assistance and security for his life. This was discovered in the following manner.

The Emperor Constantine built this church in the name and in honour of the Apostles, making a decree that there should be a sepulchre there for himself, and for those who should rule after him, women as well as men; which is observed even to the present day. Here also the body of the father of Constantine was laid; but he did not in any way hint that the bodies of the Apostles were there, nor did there appear to be any place set apart for the bodies of saints. When, however, the Emperor Justinian was rebuilding this church, the workmen dug up the whole foundation, lest any unseemly thing should be left in it. They saw there three neglected wooden coffins, which declared by inscriptions upon them that they contained the bodies of the Apostles Andrew, Luke, and Timothy, which the Emperor and all Christian men beheld with the greatest delight. A solemn procession and public festival was ordered, and, after the customary rites had been performed in their honour, the coffins were covered up, and again placed in the ground. The place was not left unmarked or uncared for, but was reverently dedicated to the bodies of the Apostles. In return for the respect paid them by the Emperor, the Apostles, as I said before, made themselves manifest to all men; for, under a religious prince, the host of heaven do not hold themselves aloof from the affairs of men, but love to mingle with them, and rejoice in intercourse with mankind.

Who could be silent about the Church of Acacius,[16] which, being ruinous, he pulled down and built up again from its very foundations, adding wonderfully to its size? It rests on all sides upon brilliantly white columns, and its floor is covered with similar marble, from which so bright a light is reflected as to make one imagine that the whole church is covered with snow. Two porticos stand in front of it, the one supported on columns, and the other looking towards the forum. I was within a little of omitting to mention the church which was dedicated to St. Plato the Martyr,[17] a truly worthy and noble building, not far from the forum, which is named after the Emperor Constantine; and likewise the church dedicated to the Martyr Mocius,[18] which is the largest of all these churches. Besides this, there is the Church of the Martyr Thyssus, and the Church of St. Theodorus,[19] standing outside the city in the place which is called Rhesias, and the Church of the Martyr Thecla, which is near the harbour named after Julian, and that of St. Theodota in the suburb which is called Hebdomon. All these were built from their foundations by this Emperor during the reign of his uncle Justin, and are not easy to describe in words, while it is impossible to admire them sufficiently when beholding them. My narrative is now attracted to the Church of St. Agathonicus,[20] and I am forced to mention it, though I have no longer voice nor words befitting such a work: let it be sufficient for me to have said thus much of it; I will leave the description of its beauty and sumptuousness in all respects to others to whom the subject is fresh, and who are not wearied out by their labours.