The following text comes from the work of Plato Rodokanakis: The queen and the Byzantine lords "(1920)
During the reign of Constantine the Purple-Born we see the noble animal in the position which was given to it. The Empress, the princesses, the ladies of the aristocracy, who can not walk because of the narrowness of their sandals, go on horseback to St. Sophia and the holy water. "Horse-grooms feed herds of horses from the best of Arabia, wash them with fragrant wines, feed them with raisins and peanuts, hang necklaces around their necks with pearls, the marble stables are adorned with mosaics and the Imperial family with the whole of the Court and the congregation, was once forced to leave the Hagia Sophia. The service under the Patriarch ceased due to a sudden health problem of his favored mare.
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