Seth Argo's speech at the Hall of Worthies
We stand here today in the midst of what will surely be described by future scholars as one of the greatest works of modern architecture of our age. Reborn are the dreams of spring in an age of splendor. Today I will shed some important light on the history of this great building and the ways in which, in its restored state, it embodies both our reverence for tradition and our utter modernity.
It is greatly to the credit of this magnificent hall and its edifice that its designers have so wisely elected to retain so much of the original character of the Hall of Worthies. The Worthies, as is of course well-known, was an epithet applied by the ancients to the chiefs of the ancient peoples from whom descend our Houses. No ordinary domed auditorium indeed, for the Hall has stood in this place for nearly nineteen hundred years. Much about its early construction is lost to the mists, but even at its earliest days, it stood as a meeting-hall for the Emperors and their advisors. Expanded and refigured in many phases, but always mindful of its own past, just as our souls are reborn through the Cycle.
The greatest credit of this new Hall is the honour it pays to our traditions, and to its own history. To my left, observe the great arch through which Imperial candidates travel in entering this chamber following their period of seclusion. Although the keystone remained intact after the tragedy, much of the supporting framework needed to be replaced. Restored to its original glory, it evokes and symbolizes that selfsame Arch which for so long was the crucible of Imperial power.
Some of the most dramatic and remarkable changes we see in the configuration of the aisles and walkways, so modern-seeming, in fact similarly evoke ancient roots, long obscured whether by intent or by neglect. We now stand in the first great modern building whose architecture reflects the seven spokes of our extended Wheel. What nobility of vision, what grand fulfillment of purpose. But while this is new to us, my recent research shows that it is not truly new at all. Instead, the sevenfold partition of this chamber reflects the original intent of its designers so many centuries ago. A careful examination of the foundations of this structure reveals that at the time of its erection, it was divided not into six, but seven equal parts. No mere mistake, this, for the division of the circle into seven is a challenge both to the architect and the mathematician. Concealed under our feet for so long, our history and unity is revealed through tragedy.
So let the common folk of Diablotin pay tribute, not only to those Worthies on whose foundations our society has prospered, but also to those foundations of this hall whose presence supports the work of state and ceremony that it sustains, and indeed to those worthy leaders who, in times of crisis, wisely elect to restore such symbols to their rightful place of grandeur and esteem.
