Bosphorus and forthwith vanished
The magistrates seemed to have been driven from their senses, and their wits enslaved by the fear of one man. The judges, when deciding...
Pointing out personal enemies
Some of the opposite party joined this faction so as to get even with the people of their original side who had ill-treated them;...
Dacius pointed out
Flocks of birds rose into flight, stirred from their feeding by the passage of so many mounted men. And from the jungle along the...
Intrigues like the one Galerius
Constantine smiled. “Sometimes I wonder why I listen to these wild tales of yours ”
“Because you know they’re true. Empires are built, and maintained,...
Busiris or Coptos
“Somewhere between here and Busiris or Coptos, you became a man,” he said. “I’m sorry about Minervina. She was a lovely child.” “It has...
Essentially Oriental character of Byzantine architecture
The Oriental love of splendour is shown in the piling up of domes and still more in facing the walls with slabs of marble,...
Koimesis or Dormitio in Nicaea
A type appearing more frequently is the domical church plan or the Greek-cross plan. The Koimesis, or Dormitio, in Nicaea (ninth century) has a...
Paul the Silentiary – the Magnificence of Hagia Sophia
Here are some short extracts from a famous encomium by Paul the Silentiary, in which he draws on the imagery of Hagia Sophia...
