of his
body, pieced them accurately together, joined them properly, and sewed
the body together again. She then sent for the statuaries, and bade
them reproduce this pitiable object in a brazen statue. The workmen
straightway made the statue, and his wife, having received it from
them, set it up in the street which leads up to the Capitol from the
Forum, on the right hand side, where to this day one may see
Domitian's statue, showing the marks of his tragic end. One may say
that the whole of Justinian's person, his expression, and all his
features can be traced in this statue.

Such was his portrait; but it would be exceedingly difficult to give
an accurate estimate of his character; he was an evil-doer, and yet
easily led by the nose, being, in common parlance, a fool as well as a
knave. He never was truthful with anyone, but always spoke and acted
cunningly, yet any who chose could easily outwit him. His character
was a sorry mixture of folly and bad principles. One may say of him
what one of the Peripatetic philosophers of old said long ago, that in
men, as in the mixing of colours, the most opposite qualities combine.
I will therefore only describe his disposition as far as I have been
able to fathom it.

This prince was deceitful, fond of crooked ways, artificial, given to
hiding his wrath, double-faced, and cruel, exceedingly clever in
concealing his thoughts, and never moved to tears either by joy or
grief, but capable of weeping if the occasion required it. He was
always a liar not merely on the spur of the moment; he drew up
documents and swore the most solemn oaths to respect the covenants
which he made with his subjects; then he would straightway break his
plighted word and his oath, like the vilest of slaves, who perjure
themselves and are only driven to confess through fear of torture. He
was a faithless friend, an inexorable foe, and mad for murder and
plunder; quarrelsome and revolutionary, easily led to do evil, never
persuaded to act rightly, he was quick to contrive and carry out what
was evil, but loathed even to hear of good actions.

How could any man fully describe Justinian's character? He had all
these vices and other even greater ones, in larger proportion than any
man; indeed, Nature seemed to have taken away all other men's vices
and to have implanted them all in this man's breast. Besides all this,
he was ever disposed to give ear to accusations, and quick to punish.
He never tried a case