Beate Dignas & Engelbert Winter - Kaveh Farrokh

246 9 Exchange of information between West and East
cover the expense of the journey here for up to 103 days. For this many days have
always been determined as sufficient for an ambassador making his way up [to
Constantinople], and as many for his return. It happens that he is slow on his way,
and the emperor gives instructions to the effect that he is given a supplement. The
record of what has been given to him is kept in the scrinium of the barbarians. 8
And according to the agreements that were concluded when Constantine became
praetorian prefect five horses were assigned to him, and 30 pack animals. If the
emperor wants to give him special attention, he gives order that he be assigned
much more. If he wants to honour him as well, he must send for him and receive
him through one of the highly ranked men in Galatia and Cappadocia, and to
provide food for him. Likewise, he must send to Nicaea to host and look after
him there. It is necessary that when he gets close to Antioch, 9 the magister also
sends a magistrianus, who has to meet and greet him, and to find out how he is
being guided through Roman territory. If the emperor wishes, he does this once
and then a second time, that is he both writes to him and greets him, and asks
him how he is being guided. It is necessary that pack animals are ready for him
at Helenopolis and also light vessels, in order that, if he wishes, [p. 401] he may
go to Nicomedia on foot, or if he wishes, may get across in the light vessels, and
there it is absolutely necessary that horses and pack animals are ready for him, in
order that they receive him and take him to Chalcedon. In Chalcedon the magister
has to provide lodgings both for him and his men, and to send the optio 10 of the
barbarians and to set aside for him sufficient expenses for the day, or even days that
he spends in Chalcedon. And as his host he sends gifts to him. It is the magister’s
duty to immediately send someone to greet him, and to ask how his journey was,
and that he was not recovering from anything, and simply to entertain him as much
as possible. It is necessary that his lodgings in the city are prepared in advance as
is appropriate for the rank of the man and for the group that he brings along,
and that in there are for him beds, linen, ovens, fireplaces, tables and buckets to
carry water and to be of service with regard to the other dirty tasks. But the comes
privatorum bears the expense of the bed linen according to a billet of the magister,
or rather the sacellarius of the emperor (for now this duty has been transferred to
him). The praefectus urbis [p. 402] bears the expense for the beds, drinking vessels,
tables, ovens and pots, again according to a billet of the magister. The men of the
arsenals provide the fireplaces. The men from the workshops are also assigned to
him by the supervisor. And the bath of the house, in which he is to live, has to
be made ready, or close to this, in order that, whenever he wants, he himself and
those with him can take a bath, and the bath is at their disposal alone . . .
(90) What should be observed during the other days with regard to the
ambassador.
The emperor, once he has read the letter, when he wants to, allows the magister
to inform the ambassador that he may come to the palace on the following day. He
8 On the scrinium barbarorum see Clauss 1981: 137.
9 On the question whether this is Antioch in Pisidia or the capital of Syria on the river Orontes see
the references in Greatrex and Lieu 2002: 275–6 n. 8.
10 The optio could be either a military official or an ambassador.