Living
Crimina gravissima
From Minerva Britanna (1612)
VPON a Cock, heere Ganimede doth sit,
Who erst rode mounted on IOVES Eagles back,
One hand holdes Circes wand, and ioind with it,
A cup top-fil'd with poison, deadly black:
The other Meddals, of base mettals wrought,
With sundry moneyes, counterfeit and nought.
These be those crimes, abhorr'd of God and man,
Which Iustice should correct, with lawes severe,
In Ganimed, the foule Sodomitan:
Withi the Cock, vile incest doth appeare:
Witchcraft, and murder, by that cup and wand,
And by the rest, false coine you vnderstand.
Cite this poem
MLA
Peacham, Henry. “Crimina gravissima.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/peacham/46/.
Chicago
Peacham, Henry. “Crimina gravissima.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/peacham/46/.
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