Iconostasis.—“Our emperor has levied from the whole earth, and brought together the wealth of the barbarians of the west; for as he did not deem stone a fitting adornment for the divine, eternal temple, on which [New] Rome has centred the expectancy of joy; he has not spared enrichments of silver, and so the ridge of Pangaeus[76] and the height of Sunium[77] have opened all their silver veins, and many treasure-houses of our subject kings have yielded their stores.
“For as much of the great church by the eastern arch as was set apart for the bloodless sacrifices, no ivory, no stone, nor bronze distinguishes, but it is all fenced with the silver metal. Not only upon the walls, which separate the holy priests from the crowd of singers,[78] has he placed mere plates of silver, but he has covered all the columns themselves with the silver metal, even six sets of twain; and the rays of light glitter far and wide. Upon them the tool has formed dazzling circles, beautifully wrought in skilled symmetry by the craftsman’s hand, in the centre of which is carved the symbol of the Immaculate God, who took upon Himself the form of man. In parts stand up an army of winged angels in pairs, with bent necks and downcast mien (for they could not gaze upon the glory of the Godhead, though hidden in the form of man to clear man’s flesh from sin). And elsewhere the tool has fashioned the heralds of the way of God, even those by whose words were noised abroad, before He took flesh upon Him, the divine tidings of the Anointed One. Nor had the craftsman forgotten the forms of those others, whose childhood was with the fishing-basket and the net; but who left the mean labours of life and unholy cares to bear witness at the bidding of a heavenly king, fishing even for men, and forsaking the skill of casting nets to weave the beauteous seine of eternal life. In other parts art has limned (kategraphe) the Mother of Christ, the vessel of eternal Light, whose womb brought Him forth in holy travail.
“But on the middle panels of the sacred screen, which forms the barrier for the priests, the carver’s art has cut one letter that means many words, for it combines the name of our king and queen. And he has also wrought a form like a shield with a boss, showing the cross in the middle parts. And through the triple doors the screen opens to the priests. For on each side the skilful hand of the workman has made small doors.
The Ciborium.—“And above the all-holy table of gold rises in the air a tower (purgos) indescribable, reared on fourfold arches of silver. And it is borne aloft on silver columns, on whose tops every arch rests its silver feet. And above the arches rises a figure like a cone, yet it is not complete. For at the bottom its edge (antux) does not turn round in the circular form, but has an eight-sided base, and from a broad plan it gradually diminishes to a sharp point, having eight sides of silver. And at the juncture of each to other is, as it were, a long backbone (rachis) which seems to join with the triangular faces of the eight-sided form, and rises to a single crest, where is artfully wrought the form of a cup. And the edges of the cup bend over and assume the form of leaves, and in the midst of it has been placed a shining silver globe, and the cross surmounts it all. May it be an omen of peace! But above the arches many a curve of acanthus twines round the lower part of the cone, and the plant shows sharp projections which rise up from the groundwork like the fruit of a fragrant pear, glittering with light.
“Now where the fitted edges join the flat base are fixed and set bowls of silver. And in each cup stands as it were a candle, though it is a glittering symbol not made of wax, and beauty flashes from them and not light. For they are made round of silver, brightly polished. Thus the candle flashes a silver ray not the light of fire.
The Altar.—“And on columns of gold is raised the all gold slab[79] of the holy table, standing on gold foundations, and bright with the glitter of different stones.
“Whither am I carried? whither tends my unbridled speech? Let my voice be silent, and not lay bare what is not meet for the eyes of the people to see.
Altar Curtains.—“But, ye priests, as the sacred laws command you, spread out the curtain dipped in the red dye of the Sidonian shell and cover the sacred table. Unfold the veils (kaluptrai) hanging on the four sides of silver, and show to the countless crowd a multitude of beautiful designs in gold of skilful handiwork. On one side is cunningly wrought the form of Christ. And this was not worked by skilful hands plying the needle on the stuff, but by the web, the produce of the worm[80] from distant lands, changing its coloured threads of many shades. A garment shimmering with gold, like the rays of rosy-fingered dawn, flashes down to the divine knees, and a chiton, deep red from the Tyrian shell dye, covers the right shoulder beneath its well-woven web. The veiling upper robe has slipped away, and pulled up across the side it only covers the left shoulder, while the forearm and the hand are bare. He seems to point the fingers of the right hand, as if preaching the words of Life, and in the left hand He holds the book of the divine message,—the book that tells what the Messiah accomplished when his foot was on the earth. And the whole robe shines with gold; for on it a thin gold thread is led through the web, as if a fair chain was laid on the cloth in a groove or channel and bound with silken thread by sharp needles. And on either side stand the two messengers of God—Paul, full of divine wisdom, and also the mighty doorkeeper of the Gates of Heaven, binding with both heavenly and earthly chains. One holds the book pregnant with sacred words, and the other the form of a cross on a staff of gold. And both the cunning web has clothed in robes of silver white, and over their sacred heads rises upward a temple of gold, with triple apses fixed on four columns of gold.
“Now on the extreme borders of the curtain shot with gold, unspeakable art has figured the works of mercy of our city’s kings; here one sees hospitals for the sick, there sacred fanes, while on either side are displayed the miracles of Christ; such is the grace and beauty of the work.
“But on the other curtains you see the kings of the earth on one side with their hands joined to those of the Virgin, on the other side with those of Christ, and all is cunningly wrought by the threads of the woof with the sheen of a golden warp. Thus is everything adorned with splendour. Thus may you see all that fills the eyes with wonder.