Love
Book XIII, 22
Translated by W. R. Paton (1916–18) · From The Greek Anthology (Loeb, vol. V, 1918)
O King, Far-shooter, curb the force of thy bow with which thou didst lay low the Giant’s might. Open not thy wolf-slaying quiver, but aim at these young men the arrow of Love, that strong in the friendship of their youthful peers, they may defend their country; for it sets courage afire, and He is ever of all gods the strongest to exalt the hearts of the foremost in the fight. But do thou, whom the Schoenians reverence as their ancestral god, accept the gifts Melistion proffers.
This translation is printed as prose in its source edition.
Codex Note
Paton’s metre label: ‘Complete trimeters followed by epodes (shorter verses) consisting of heroic tetrameters scazon in the penultimate syllable’.
Cite this poem
MLA
Phaedimus. “Book XIII, 22.” Translated by W. R. Paton. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/phaedimus/3/.
Chicago
Phaedimus. “Book XIII, 22.” Translated by W. R. Paton. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/phaedimus/3/.
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