  We propose a conjectural formula for correlation functions of the Z-invariant
(inhomogeneous) eight-vertex model. We refer to this conjecture as Ansatz. It
states that correlation functions are linear combinations of products of three
transcendental functions, with theta functions and derivatives as coefficients.
The transcendental functions are essentially logarithmic derivatives of the
partition function per site. The coefficients are given in terms of a linear
functional on the Sklyanin algebra, which interpolates the usual trace on
finite dimensional representations. We establish the existence of the
functional and discuss the connection to the geometry of the classical limit.
We also conjecture that the Ansatz satisfies the reduced qKZ equation. As a
non-trivial example of the Ansatz, we present a new formula for the
next-nearest neighbor correlation functions.
