Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, SONNETS OF MANHOOD: 16. VENUS INCARNATE, by GEORGE BARLOW (1847-1913)


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SONNETS OF MANHOOD: 16. VENUS INCARNATE, by                    
First Line: Upon the old cliff thou stood'st with wondrous eyes
Last Line: And charge along the vapour-shrouded sands.
Subject(s): Mythology - Classical; Venus (goddess)


Upon the old cliff thou stood'st with wondrous eyes
Wherethrough the timeless soul of Venus shone;
And I,—I knew myself thy bard alone
Till very death turns faint of heart and dies.
Thy soul was mingled with the pale-blue skies,
And through thine hair a mystic breeze was blown,
And in thy tongue spake Venus' silver tone,—
Robed wast thou, mortal, in immortal wise.

So thou dost hold my soul for evermore,
O Venus-lady, in thy tender hands
Which held innumerable souls of yore
And swayed the unsearchable and ancient lands,—
Now clasping my soul where grey breakers roar
And charge along the vapour-shrouded sands.





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