rned them; but the blues had compassion
and relieved their distress, and this difference of treatment made a
profound impression on the child Theodora, which had its influence on
her later conduct. As the maidens increased in age and improved in
beauty, they were trained by their mother for a theatrical career.
Theodora first followed Comito on the stage, playing the role of
chambermaid, but at length she exercised her talents independently. She
became neither a singer nor a dancer nor a flute player, but she figured
in the _tableaux Vivants_, where her beauty freely displayed itself, and
in the pantomimes, where her vivacity and grace and sprightliness caused
the whole theatre to resound with laughter and applause. She was, if the
panegyrists may be believed, the most beautiful woman of her age.
Procopius, the best historian of the day, says that "it was impossible
for mere man to describe her comeliness in words or to imitate it in
art." "Her features were delicate and regular; her complexion, though
somewhat pale, was tinged with a natural colour; every sensation was
instantly expressed by the vivacity of her eyes; her easy motions
displayed the graces of a small but elegant figure; and either love or
adulation might proclaim that painting and poetry were incapable of
delineating the matchless excellence of her form." It is unfortunate
that we have no likeness which portrays her exquisite beauty. The famous
mosaic in San Vitale at Ravenna is the best authentic representation of
the empress, but a mosaic can give but little idea of the original.

But Theodora possessed other fascinations besides beauty: she was
intelligent, full of _esprit_, witty. However, with all these gifts
there was in her a deficiency of the moral sense and a natural
inclination to pleasure in all its forms. Sad to relate, her charms were
venal. If the Secret History be believed, her adventures were both
numerous and scandalous; to quote a piquant expression of Gibbon, "her
charity was universal." Procopius recounts memorable after-theatre
suppers and _tableaux vivants_ that would be excluded from the most
licentious of modern stages. After a wild career in the capital as the
reigning figure of the demi-monde, Theodora suddenly disappeared. She
condescended to accompany to his province a certain Ecebolus, who had
been appointed governor of the African Pentapolis. But this union was
transient. She either abandoned her lover or was deserted by him,