Love

The Sempstress

by Ch’in T’ao-yü 8th or 9th century AD

Translated by Herbert A. Giles (1898) · From Chinese Poetry in English Verse (1898)

Love

In silk and satin ne'er arrayed,
My fate to be a lone old maid;
No handsome bridegroom comes for me
Dressed in the garb of poverty.
I learned to sew with skill and grace,
Though not to paint my brows and face.
Yet I must ply my golden thread
For other maids about to wed.

MLA

T’ao-yü, Ch’in. “The Sempstress.” Translated by Herbert A. Giles. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/chin-tao-yu/0/.

Chicago

T’ao-yü, Ch’in. “The Sempstress.” Translated by Herbert A. Giles. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/chin-tao-yu/0/.

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