[25] So in that place he dug a crescent-shaped moat, with sufficient breadth and depth and extending to a great distance, and joined either end of this to the outworks and filled it amply with water, rendering it altogether impassable for the enemy; and on its inner side he set up another outwork. On this the Romans take their stand and keep guard in time of siege, freed from anxiety for the circuit-wall and the other outwork which is thrown out before the main wall.
[26] ἐτύγχανε δὲ τοῦ τε τείχους καὶ τοῦ προτειχίσματος μεταξὺ κατὰ τὰς πύλας αἳ καταντικρὺ τοῦ Ἀμμώδιος χωρίου εἰσί, μέγα τι χρῆμα χώματος κείμενον, καὶ ἀπ᾽ αὐτοῦ οἱ πολέμιοι λανθάνειν ἐκ τοῦ ἐπὶ πλεῖστον οἷοί τε ἦσαν ἐπὶ τῇ πόλει διώρυχας ἔνερθεν τοῦ περιβόλου ποιούμενοι.
[26] And it happened that between the main wall and the outwork, at the gate which faces toward the village of Ammodius, there lay a great mound of earth, under cover of which the enemy were able to be in large measure unobserved while making mines against the city under the circuit-wall.
[27] ὅπερ ἐνθένδε περιελὼν καὶ περικαθήρας εὖ μάλα τὸν χῶρον, ταύτῃ τοῖς πολεμίοις τὴν ἐς τὸ τεῖχος ἐπιβουλὴν ἀνεχαίτισε.
[27] This mound he removed from the spot and he cleared up the place thoroughly, and thus frustrated any secret attack on the wall by the enemy.
[2] [2] [1] Τὰ μὲν οὖν τοῦ ὀχυρώματος αὐτῷ τῇδέ πη πεποίηται. καὶ ὕδατος δὲ εἰργάσατο ἔλυτρα πὴ μὲν τοῦ περιβόλου καὶ τοῦ προτειχίσματος μεταξύ, πὴ δὲ ἄγχιστα τοῦ νεὼ ὃς Βαρθολομαίῳ ἀποστόλῳ ἀνεῖται πρὸς δύοντά που τὸν ἥλιον.
[1] Thus did he construct these fortifications. He likewise made reservoirs for water both in the space between the circuit-wall and the outworks and also close by the church which is dedicated to the Apostle Bartholomew, situated toward the west.
[2] ῥεῖ δὲ καὶ ποταμὸς ἐκ προαστείου τῆς πόλεως διέχοντος αὐτῆς σημείοιν δυοῖν, ὃ δὴ Κόρδης ἐπικαλεῖται.
[2] And a river also flows from a suburb of the city which is •two miles distant from it and is called Cordes.
[3] ἐφ᾽ ἑκάτερα δὲ αὐτοῦ σκοπέλω δύο ἀνέχετον ὑπεράγαν σκληρώ· πρόεισί τε μεταξὺ τῆς ἑκατέρου ὑπωρείας ἄχρι ἐς τὴν πόλιν ὁ ποταμὸς οὗτος, παρὰ τοὺς πρόποδας φερόμενος ]τῶν ὀρῶν, μάλιστά τε καὶ δι᾽ αὐτὸ τοῖς πολεμίοις ἄτρεπτός τε καὶ ἀνεπαφός ὤν·
[3] On either side of it rise two cliffs which are exceedingly rugged. This river flows down between the heights on either side of it all the way to the city, carried along the bases of the mountains, and for just this reason it cannot be turned aside or tampered with by the enemy;
[4] οὐ γὰρ ἔχουσι βιάζεσθαί πη αὐτὸν ἐν ὑπτίῳ τῆς γῆς. ἐπισπῶνται δὲ αὐτὸν ἐς τὴν πόλιν τρόπῳ τοιῷδε.
[4] for there is no flat ground where they might be able to turn it from its course. And it is drawn into the city in the following way.
[5] ὀχετὸν μὲν ἐκ τοῦ περιβόλου πεποίηνται μέγαν, ὀβελοῖς δὲ σιδηροῖς τὸ τοῦ ὀχετοῦ στόμα συχνοῖς τε καὶ ὡς παχυτάτοις καταλαβόντες, τοῖς μὲν ὀρθοῖς, τοῖς δὲ ἐγκαρσίοις, διεπράξαντο τῷ ὕδατι ἐς τὴν πόλιν εἰσιτητὰ εἶναι, οὐκ ἐπὶ πονηρῷ τοῦ ὀχυρώματος.
[5] They have constructed a large channel extending out from the circuit-wall, and covered the mouth of the conduit with a great number of the thickest possible iron bars, some upright and some horizontal; and thus they have arranged that the water can enter the city without endangering the fortifications.
[6] οὕτω τοίνυν ἐς τὴν πόλιν ἐσιὼν καὶ τὰ ἐκείνῃ ἔλυτρα ἐμπλησάμενος, περιαγόμενός τε ὅποι ποτὲ δοκοίη τοῖς τῇδε ἀνθρώποις, εἶτα ἐκβάλλει ἐς ἑτέραν τινὰ τῆς πόλεως χώραν, ἐμφεροῦς αὐτῷ τῇ ἐς τὴν πόλιν εἰσαγωγῇ πεποιημένης τῆς ἐκβολῆς.
[6] In this way the water flows into the city and fills its reservoirs and then is conducted wherever the inhabitants wish, and finally flows out at another part of the city, the opening for its discharge being made like that by which it enters the city.
[7] περιιών τε τὰ ταύτῃ πεδία ἐς πολιορκίαν εὐπετῆ ἐποιεῖτο τὴν πόλιν. ἐνταῦθα γὰρ ἐνστρατοπεδεύεσθαι τοῖς πολεμίοις τῇ τοῦ ὕδατος περιουσίᾳ οὐ χαλεπὸν ἦν.
[7] And winding about the plain near by, it used to make the city easy to besiege; for it was not a difficult matter, thanks to the bountiful supply of water, for the enemy to encamp there.
[8] ὅπερ ἵνα μὴ γένηται λογισάμενος Ἰουστινιανὸς βασιλεὺς τὰ παρόντα ἐν βούλῃ ἐποιεῖτο, διασκοπούμενος εἴ τινα τῷ πράγματι ἄκεσιν εὕροι.
[8] So in order that this should not happen the Emperor Justinian took the situation under careful consideration, seeking diligently to find some remedy for the condition.
[9] ὁ δὲ θεὸς αὐτῷ τὴν ἀμηχανίαν ἰώμενος, ἀπαυτοματίσας τὴν πρᾶξιν μελλήσει τὴν πόλιν οὐδεμίᾳ διεσώσατο. ἐγίνετο δὲ δὴ ὧδε.
[9] And God provided the solution for the impossible problem which confronted him, settling the matter out of hand and saving the city without the least delay. This took place as follows.
[10] Τῶν τις ἐκείνῃ στρατευσαμένων, εἴτε τινὰ ὄψιν ὀνείρου ἰδὼν εἴτε αὐτόματος εἰς τοῦτο ἠγμένος, τῶν περὶ τὰς οἰκοδομίας τεχνιτῶν ἑταιρισάμενος πόλιν ὅμιλον, διώρυχα ἐκέλευε μακρὰν ἐντὸς τοῦ περιβόλου γεγενῆσθαι, δείξας τι χωρίον αὐτοῖς· ὕδωρ γὰρ πότιμον ἐνταῦθα εὑρήσειν ἐκ μυχῶν ἀποβλύζον τῆς γῆς.
[10] One of the men serving in the army in this place, either in consequence of a dream or led to do it of his own accord, gathered a great throng of the workmen who were engaged in the building operations and bade them dig a long trench within the circuit-wall, shewing them a certain spot where he said that they would find sweet water welling up from the recesses of the earth.
[11] κυκλοτερῆ ]τε τὴν διώρυχα ἐς ποδῶν μῆκος πεντεκαίδεκα ποιησάμενος ἐπὶ πλεῖστον τὸ βάθος κατῆγε.
[11] He made the pit in the form of a circle •fifteen feet across and drove it down to a great depth.
[12] τοῦτο τῇ πόλει σωτήριον, οὐκ ἐκ προνοίας τῶν τεχνιτῶν τούτων πεποίηται, ἀλλ᾽ ὅπερ ἐνταῦθα ξυμβήσεσθαι κακὸν ἔμελλεν, ἐς πᾶν ξυμφέρον διὰ τῆς κατώρυχος ἀπεκρίθη Ῥωμαίοις.
[12] This pit proved to be the salvation of the city, not indeed by any foresight of these workmen, but an event here, which would have been a disaster, turned out entirely to the advantage of the Romans, all on account
of the pit.
[13] ὄμβρων γὰρ μεταξὺ ἐξαισίων καταρραγέντων, ὁ ποταμὸς οὗπερ ἐπεμνήσθην ἀρτίως πρὸ τοῦ περιβόλου μορμύρων ἀρθείς τε ἐπὶ μέγα κατὰ τὰ ξυνειθισμένα οὐκέτι ἐχώρει, οὐ δεχομένων αὐτὸν τηλικόνδε γεγενημένον οὔτε τῶν εἰσόδων οὔτε τοῦ ὀχετοῦ ᾗπερ τὰ πρότερα.
[13] For during this time extraordinarily heavy rains fell, and the river, which I just mentioned, rose in high flood before the circuit-wall and no longer flowed in its usual bed, and it became so swollen that neither the opening by which it entered the city nor the conduit could contain it as formerly.
[14] ξυνίστατο οὖν ἐπὶ τὸ τεῖχος ξυνάγων τὸν ῥοῦν, ἐς ὕψος τε καὶ βάθος κατατείνων πολύ, καὶ πὴ μὲν λιμνάζων, πὴ δὲ κυρτούμενός τε καὶ κυματίας γεγενημένος.
[14] So it backed up and gathered its stream against the wall, rising to a great height and depth; in some places it was stagnant, but elsewhere it was rough and turbulent.
[15] τὸ μὲν οὖν προτείχισμα βιασάμενος καθεῖλεν εὐθύς, κατασείσας δὲ καὶ πολλήν τινα τοῦ τείχους μοῖραν καὶ τὰς πύλας ἀναπετάσας πολύς τε ῥεύσας τὴν πόλιν καταλαμβάνει σχεδόν τι ὅλην, καὶ αὐτῆς τήν τε ἀγορὰν καὶ τοὺς στενωπούς καὶ οὐδέν τι ἧσσον τὰς οἰκίας περιπολήσας, ἐπίπλων τε ἐνθένδε καὶ ξυλίνων τευχῶν καὶ ἄλλων τοιούτων φορυτὸν μέγαν ἐπαγόμενος, ἐς ταύτην τε τὴν διώρυχα ἐμπεσὼν ἀφανίζεται ὑπόγειος γεγενημένος.
[15] Consequently it broke through the outer defences and levelled them at once, and it also carried away a great portion of the main wall, and forcing open the gates and flowing in a mighty stream it spread over practically the whole city, and it circulated through the market-place and the streets and even through the houses, sweeping onward a great mass of furniture and wooden utensils and other such objects; then plunging into this pit it disappeared underground.
[16] ἡμέραις δὲ οὐ πολλαῖς ὕστερον ἄγχιστά πη τῶν Θεοδοσιουπόλεως ὁρίων ἐκδούς, ἐν χώρῳ ἐφάνη σημείοις τεσσαράκοντα διέχοντι μάλιστα Δάρας πόλεως, οἷσπερ ἐπηγάγετο ἐκ τῶν τῇδε οἰκιῶν γνωσθείς· διεφάνη γὰρ ἐνταῦθα ὁ συρφετὸς ὅλος.
[16] Not many days later it emerged near the confines of Theodosiopolis, reappearing in a place •about forty miles from the city of Daras, and it was recognised by the objects which it had carried off from the houses of that city; for the whole of the rubbish came to light there.
[17] καὶ τὸ λοιπὸν ἐν μὲν εἰρήνῃ καὶ ἀγαθοῖς πράγμασιν ἐν μέσῃ πόλει γινόμενος ὁ ποταμὸς οὗτος, περιπλέους τε τοῦ ὕδατος τοὺς θησαυροὺς ]ἐργασάμενος, φέρεται μὲν τῆς πόλεως ἔξω διὰ τῶν ἐξόδων αἵπερ αὐτῷ πεποίηνται ἐξεπίτηδες πρὸς τῶν δειμαμένων τὴν πόλιν, ὥσπερ μοι ἔναγχος δεδιήγηται.
[17] And since then, in times of peace and in prosperity, this river has flowed into the centre of the city and filled the storage-reservoirs with water to overflowing and then has been borne out of the city by the exits made for this purpose by those who built the city, as I have just explained.
[18] ἀρδεύων δὲ τὰ ἐκείνῃ χωρία ποθεινὸς ἅπασι τοῖς περιοικοῦσιν ἐς ἀεὶ γίνεται. ἐπειδὰν δὲ πολεμίων στρατὸς ὡς πολιορκήσων τὴν πόλιν ἐνταῦθα ἴοι, τὰς μὲν διὰ τῶν σιδηρῶν ὀβελῶν ἐξόδους ἐπιβύσαντες τοῖς καταράκταις καλουμένοις, αὐτίκα τε τὸν ποταμὸν μεταπεφυκέναι καὶ τὴν ἐκβολὴν μεταπορεύεσθαι βιασάμενοι ἀνάγκῃ χειροποιήτῳ, ἐπί τε τὴν διώρυχα καὶ τὸ ἐνθένδε περιάγουσι χάος.
[18] And it waters the land in that region and is always eagerly welcomed by all those who dwell round about. But whenever a hostile army comes up to besiege the city, they close the exits through the iron bars by means of sluice-gates (katarraktais), as they are called, straightway forcing the river, by this artificial constraint, to alter its course and change its exit, and they conduct it to the pit and the chasm which leads away from it.
[19] καὶ ἀπ᾽ αὐτοῦ οἱ πολέμιοι πιεζόμενοι τοῦ ὕδατος τῇ ἀπορίᾳ διαλύειν ἀναγκάζονται τὴν πολιορκίαν εὐθύς. Μιρράνης ἀμέλει ὁ Περσῶν στρατηγὸς ἐπὶ Καβάδου βασιλεύοντος ἐπὶ πολιορκίᾳ ἐνταῦθα ἥκων, τούτοις τε πᾶσιν ἀναγκασθείς, ἄπρακτος οὐκ εἰς μακρὰν ἀνεχώρησε.
[19] And as a result of the enemy are hard pressed by lack of water and are compelled immediately to abandon the siege. Indeed Mirrhanes, the Persian general during the reign of Cabades, came there to lay a siege, but was compelled by all these difficulties to retire after no long time without having accomplished anything.
[20] καὶ Χοσρόης αὐτὸς πολλῷ ὕστερον ἐπ᾽ αὐτῷ τούτῳ ἀφικόμενος στρατῷ μεγάλῳ ἐγκεχείρηκε τῇ ἐς τὴν πόλιν ἐπιβουλῇ.
[20] And Chosroes himself, a long time later, came there for the same purpose with a great army and undertook to attack the city.
[21] ὕδατός τε ἀπορίας πέρι ἀμηχάνων, καὶ ἀποσκοπούμενος τὴν τοῦ περιβόλου ὑπερβολήν, ἄμαχόν τε αὐτὴν διαρκῶς ὑπώπτευεν εἶναι, καὶ τὰ βεβουλευμένα μεταγνούς, εὐθυωρὸν ἐς τὰ Περσῶν ἤθη ἀπιὼν ᾤχετο, τῇ τοῦ Ῥωμαίων αὐτοκράτορος καταστρατηγηθεὶς προμηθείᾳ.
] [21] But finding himself in straits for want of water, and viewing the imposing height of the circuit-wall, which he suspected was quite impregnable, he changed his purpose and departed, marching straight for the Persian territory, outwitted by the foresight of the Roman Emperor.
[3] [3] [1] Ταῦτα μὲν οὖν ἐν πόλει Δάρας οὕτω δὴ βασιλεὺς Ἰουστινιανὸς κατεστήσατο· ὅντινα δὲ προσεποίησε τρόπον τῇ πόλει μηκέτι αὐτῇ πάθος πρὸς τοῦ ποταμοῦ ξυμβῆναι τοιοῦτον, τοῦ θεοῦ διαρρήδην αὐτῷ ξυνεπιλαμβανομένου τὸ σπούδασμα τοῦτο, ἐγὼ δηλώσω.
[1] These projects, then, were carried out as I have said by the Emperor Justinian at the city of Daras. I shall now relate how he brought it about that this city should never again suffer such damage from the river, a matter in which God manifestly assisted his effort.
[2] Χρυσῆς ἦν τις Ἀλεξανδρεύς, μηχανοποιὸς δεξιός, ὅσπερ βασιλεῖ τὰ ἐς τὰς οἰκοδομίας ὑπηρετῶν, τὰ πλεῖστα τῶν τε ἐν πόλει Δάρας καὶ τῇ ἄλλῃ χώρᾳ γεγονότα ἐξείργασται.
[2] There was a certain Chryses of Alexandria, a skillful master-builder, who served the Emperor in his building operations and built most of the structures erected in the city of Daras and in the rest of the country.
/> [3] οὗτος ὁ Χρυσῆς ἀπεδήμει μὲν ἡνίκα δὴ ἐν πόλει Δάρας τὸ ἐκ τοῦ ποταμοῦ πάθος ξυνέπεσεν· ἀκηκοὼς δὲ καὶ περιαλγήσας τῇ συμφορᾷ ἐς κοίτην τὴν αὑτοῦ ἀπεχώρησεν. ὄψιν δὲ ὀνείρου τοιάνδε εἶδεν·
[3] This Chryses was away at the time when the disaster caused by the river befell the city of Daras, and after he heard the news he went to his bed in distress over the misfortune. And he saw a vision as follows.
[4] ἐδόκει οἱ ἐν τῷ ὀνείρῳ τις ὑπερφυής τε καὶ τὰ ἄλλα κρείσσων ἢ ἀνθρώπῳ εἰκάζεσθαι μηχανήν τινα ἐπαγγέλλειν τε καὶ ἐνδείκνυσθαι, ἣ ἂν διακωλύειν τὸν ποταμὸν ἱκανὴ εἴη ἐπὶ πονηρῷ τῆς πόλεως μηκέτι μορμύρειν.
[4] It seemed in his dream that a certain creature of enormous size and in other respects too mighty to resemble a man, prescribed and gave directions for a certain device which would be able to prevent the river from again running wild to the ruin of the city.
[5] καὶ ὁ μὲν αὐτίκα θεῖον ὑποτοπήσας τὸ πρᾶγμα εἶναι, τήν τε μηχανὴν καὶ τὴν τοῦ ὀνείρου ὄψιν ἐς βασιλέα γράψας ἀνήνεγκε, σκιαγραφήσας τὴν ἐκ τοῦ ὀνείρου διδασκαλίαν.
Delphi Complete Works of Procopius Page 588