BYZANTINE CONSTANTINOPLE
Map of Constantinople in 1422.
Ἐγὼ δὲ ὧς μητέρα φιλῶ καὶ γὰρ ἐγενόμην πὰρ᾽ αὐτῇ καὶἐτράφην ἐκεῖσε, καὶ οὐ δύναμαι περὶ αὐτὴν ἀγνωμονῆσαι.
Emperor Julian, Epistle 58.
PREFACE.
In the following pages I venture to take part in the taskof identifying the historical sites of Byzantine or Roman Constantinople,with the view of making the events of which thatcity was the theatre more intelligible and vivid. The newinterest now taken in all related to the Byzantine worlddemands a work of this character.
The attention I have devoted, for many years, to thesubject has been sustained by the conviction that the Empireof which New Rome was the capital defended the higherlife of mankind against the attacks of formidable antagonists,and rendered eminent service to the cause of human welfare.This is what gives to the archæological study of the city itsdignity and importance.
Only a portion of my subject is dealt with in the presentvolume—the walls of the city, which were the bulwarks ofcivilization for more than a thousand years, and the adjoiningsites and monuments memorable in history.
While availing myself, as the reader will find, of the resultsobtained by my predecessors in this field of research, I haveendeavoured to make my work a fresh and independentviinvestigation of the subject, by constant appeals to the originalauthorities, and by direct examination of the localities concerned.The difficult questions which must be decided, inorder that our knowledge of the old city may be more satisfactory,have been made prominent. Some of them, however,cannot be answered once for all, until excavations are permitted.
By the frequent quotations and references which occur inthe course of the following discussions, the student will findhimself placed in a position to verify the statements and toweigh the arguments submitted to his consideration. Alldifference of opinion leading nearer to the truth in the casewill be welcomed.
My best thanks are due to the friends and the photographerswho have enabled me to provide the book with illustrations,maps, and plans, thus making the study of the subjectclearer and more interesting. The plan of the so-called Prisonsof Anemas by Hanford W. Eds