E04395: Procopius of Caesarea, in his On Buildings, reports that the emperor Justinian (r. 527-565) built a church dedicated to *Eirene (martyr of Magedon, S02162), at Sykai (suburb of Constantinople). During the building works, relics of the Forty Martyrs of Sebaste (S00103) are discovered, which cure him of a serious knee ailment, while miraculous oil flows from the relics. The emperor's purple tunic, drenched with this oil, is kept in the imperial palace in order to heal the incurably ill. Written in Greek at Constantinople, in the 550s.

Procopius, On Buildings, 1.7.1-16

1 Ἐπέκεινα δὲ κατ’ αὐτὸ μάλιστα τοῦ κόλπου τὸ στόμα Εἰρήνης μάρτυρος νεὼς ἵδρυται. ὃς δὴ οὕτω μεγαλοπρεπῶς τῷ βασιλεῖ ὅλος ἐξείργασται ὡς οὐκ ἂν ἔγωγε φράσαι ἱκανῶς ἔχοιμι. 2 ἀντιφιλοτιμούμενος γὰρ τῇ θαλάσσῃ ἀμφὶ τοῦ κόλπου τῇ εὐπρεπείᾳ, ὥσπερ ὅρμῳ περιφέρει ἐγκαλλώπισμα τὰ ἱερὰ ταῦτα ἐντέθεικεν. ἀλλ’ ἐπεὶ τούτου δὴ τοῦ τῆς Εἰρήνης νεὼ ἐπεμνήσθην, καὶ τὸ ἐκείνῃ ξυνενεχθὲν οὔ μοι ἀπὸ τρόπου τῇδε γεγράψεται. 3 ἐνταῦθα ἔκειτο λείψανα ἐκ παλαιοῦ ἀνδρῶν ἁγίων οὐχ ἧσσον ἢ τεσσαράκοντα· οἳ στρατιῶται μὲν Ῥωμαῖοι ἐτύγχανον ὄντες, ἐν λεγεῶνι δὲ δυοδεκάτῃ ἐτάττοντο, ἣ ἐν πόλει Μελιτηνῇ τῆς Ἀρμενίας τὸ παλαιὸν ἵδρυτο. 4 ἡνίκα τοίνυν οἱ λιθοδόμοι διώρυσσον οὗπερ ἐπεμνήσθην ἀρτίως, κιβώτιον εὗρον γράμμασι σημαῖνον ὡς λείψανα ἔχοι τούτων δὴ τῶν ἀνδρῶν. 5 ὅπερ ἐξήνεγκε λεληθὸς τέως ἐξεπίτηδες ὁ θεός, ἅμα μὲν πιστούμενος ἅπαντας ὡς τὰ βασιλέως ἀσμενέστατα ἐνδέδεκται δῶρα, ἅμα δὲ καὶ τοῦ ἀνδρὸς τὴν ἀγαθοεργίαν ἀμείψασθαι διατεινόμενος χάριτι μείζονι. 6 ἐτύγχανε γὰρ Ἰουστινιανὸς βασιλεὺς χαλεπῶς ἄγαν τοῦ σώματος ἔχων, ἐπεὶ ῥεύματος δεινόν τι χρῆμα κατὰ τὸ γόνυ ἐπιπεσὸν συντριβῆναι ταῖς ὀδύναις τὸν ἄνδρα ἐποίει· οὗπέρ οἱ αὐτὸς αἰτιώτατος ἦν. 7 ἐν γὰρ ταῖς ἡμέραις ἁπάσαις αἵπερ τὴν Πασχαλίαν ἑορτὴν προτερεύουσαι νηστεῖαι καλοῦνται, σκληράν τινα βιοτὴν ἔσχε μὴ ὅτι βασιλεῖ ἀλλόκοτον οὖσαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀνθρώπῳ ἀμηγέπη τῶν πολιτικῶν ἁπτομένῳ. 8 δυοῖν γὰρ ἡμέραιν διεγεγόνει ἐς ἀεὶ ἀπόσιτος ὤν, καὶ ταῦτα μὲν ὄρθρου βαθέος διηνεκὲς ἐκ τῶν στρωμάτων ἐξανιστάμενος καὶ προεγρηγορὼς τῆς πολιτείας, ἀεί τε αὐτῆς ἔργῳ καὶ λόγῳ διαχειρίζων τὰ πράγματα, ὄρθριός τε καὶ μεσημβρινός, καὶ οὐδέν τι ἧσσον ἐπινυκτίδιος. 9 πόρρω γὰρ τῶν νυκτῶν ἐς κοίτην ἰὼν ἐξανίστατο αὐτίκα δὴ μάλα, ὥσπερ χαλεπῶς τοῖς στρώμασιν ἔχων. 10 καὶ ἡνίκα δέ που τροφὴν αἴροιτο, οἴνου μὲν καὶ ἄρτου καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἐδωδίμων ἐκτὸς ἔμενε, βοτάνας δὲ ἤσθιε μόνον, καὶ ταύτας ἀγρίας ἐπὶ χρόνου μῆκος τεταριχευμένας ἁλσί τε καὶ ὄξει, ὅ τε πότος αὐτῷ τὸ ὕδωρ ἐγίνετο μόνον. 11 οὐ μέντοι οὐδὲ τούτοις κατακορὴς γέγονε πώποτε, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἡνίκα δαῖτα αἴροιτο, ἀπογευσάμενος τούτων δὴ τῶν αὐτῷ ἐδωδίμων, εἶτα μεθίει, οὔπω ἐδηδοκὼς τὰ αὐτάρκη. 12 ἐντεῦθεν τοίνυν τὸ πάθος ἀκμάσαν τὴν ἀπὸ τῶν ἰατρῶν ἐπικουρίαν ἐνενικήκει, καὶ χρόνος τῷ βασιλεῖ πολὺς ἐν ταύταις δὴ ταῖς ὀδύναις ἐτρίβη. 13 μεταξὺ δὲ τὰ περὶ τῶν δεδηλωμένων λειψάνων ἀκούσας, τῆς ἀνθρωπείας ἀφέμενος τέχνης, ἐπὶ ταῦτα τὸ πρᾶγμα ἦγε, τὴν ὑγείαν ἐπισπώμενος τῇ ἐς αὐτὰ πίστει, καὶ δόξης τῆς ἀληθοῦς ἐν τοῖς ἀναγκαιοτάτοις ἀπώνατο. 14 οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἱερεῖς τὸν δίσκον ἐπὶ τὸ τοῦ βασιλέως ἐτίθεντο γόνυ, ἀφανίζεται δὲ τὸ πάθος εὐθύς, σώμασι δεδουλωμένοις θεῷ βιασθέν. ὅπερ ἀμφίλεκτον ὁ θεὸς οὐ ξυγχωρῶν εἶναι, σημεῖον τῶν πραττομένων ἐνδέδεικται μέγα. 15 ἔλαιον γὰρ ἐξαπιναίως ἐπιρρεῦσαν μὲν ἐκ τούτων δὴ τῶν ἁγίων λειψάνων, ὑπερβλύσαν δὲ τὸ κιβώτιον, τώ τε πόδε καὶ τὴν ἐσθῆτα τοῦ βασιλέως κατέκλυσεν ὅλην ἁλουργὸν οὖσαν. 16 διὸ δὴ ὁ χιτὼν οὕτω καταβεβρεγμένος διασώζεται ἐν τοῖς βασιλείοις, μαρτύριον μὲν τῶν τηνικάδε γεγενημένων, σωτήριον δὲ τοῖς ἐς τὸ ἔπειτα πάθεσι περιπεσουμένοις τισὶν ἀνηκέστοις.

'1 Beyond this, just about at the opening of the bay, was built a Church (neōs) of the Martyr Eirenê. This entire church was constructed by the Emperor on such a magnificent scale that I, at least, could not possibly do it justice. 2 For seeking to rival the sea in lending beauty to the land about the gulf, he set all these shrines, as in an encircling necklace, round about it. But since I have mentioned this Church (neōs) of Eirenê, it will not be amiss for me at this point to recount also the incident which happened there. 3 Here from ancient times were buried the remains of no fewer than forty holy men; these had chanced to be Roman soldiers who served in the Twelfth Legion, which in ancient times had been posted in the city of Melitenê in Armenia. 4 So when the masons were excavating in the place which I have just mentioned, they found a chest showing by an inscription that it contained the remains of these very men. 5 And God brought to light this chest, which thus far had been forgotten, with an express purpose, partly to assure all men that He had accepted the Emperor's gifts most gladly, and partly because He was eager to repay this great man's beneficence with a greater favour. 6 It chanced that the Emperor Justinian was suffering from a grievous affliction, since a dangerous discharge had set in at the knee and caused him to be tortured with pain; and for this he himself was chiefly responsible. 7 For during all the days which precede the Feast of Easter, and which are called days of fasting, he observed a severe routine which was unfit not only for an Emperor, but for any man who was concerned in any way with state affairs. 8 Indeed he had gone two whole days quite without food, and that too while rising regularly from his bed at early dawn and keeping watch over the State, and constantly managing its affairs by word and deed from early dawn to midday and equally into the night. 9 And although he went to his couch late in the night, he immediately rose again, as if he could not endure his bed. 10 And when he did take nourishment, he abstained from wine and bread and other foods and ate only herbs, and those, too, wild ones thoroughly pickled with salt and vinegar, and his only drink was water. 11 Yet he never took a sufficiency even of these, but whenever he did take a meal, he merely tasted these foods he liked and then left them before he had eaten enough. 12 Hence, then, his malady gathered strength and got beyond the help of the physicians, and for a long time the Emperor was racked by these pains. 13 But during this time he heard about the relics which had been brought to light, and abandoning human skill, he gave the case over to them, seeking to recover his health through faith in them, and in a moment of direst necessity he won the reward of the true belief. 14 For as soon as the priests laid the reliquary on the Emperor's knee, the ailment disappeared entirely, driven out by the bodies of men who had been dedicated to the service of God. And God did not permit this to be a matter of dispute, for he showed a great sign of what was being done. 15 For oil suddenly flowed out from these holy relics, and flooding the chest poured out over the Emperor's feet and his whole garment, which was purple. 16 So this tunic, thus saturated, is preserved in the Palace, partly as testimony to what occurred at that time, and also as a source of healing for those who in future are assailed by any incurable disease.'

Text: Haury 1913. Translation: Dewing 1940.