Once Phidias stood, with hammer in his hand,
Carving Minerva from the breathing stone,
Tracing with love the winding of a hair,
A single hair upon her head, whereon
A youth of Athens cried, “O Phidias,
Why do you dally on a hidden hair?
When she is lifted to the lofty front
Of the Parthenon, no human eye will see.”
And Phidias thundered on him: “Silence, slave:
Men will not see, but the Immortals will!”
(Edwin Markham)
More Poetry from Edwin Markham:
Edwin Markham Poems based on Topics: Man, Cry, Silence, Youth, Hair, Slavery, Breathing- A Lyric Of The Dawn (Edwin Markham Poems)
- The Chant Of The Vultures (Edwin Markham Poems)
- The Wall Street Pit (Edwin Markham Poems)
- The Christ Of The Andes (Edwin Markham Poems)
- A Prayer (Edwin Markham Poems)
- A Mendocino Memory (Edwin Markham Poems)
Readers Who Like This Poem Also Like:
Based on Topics: Man Poems, Youth Poems, Cry Poems, Hair Poems, Silence Poems, Slavery Poems, Breathing PoemsBased on Keywords: dally, phidias, parthenon
- Of The Nature Of Things: Book V - Part 02 - Against Teleological (Lucretius Poems)
- Book V - Part 02 - Against Teleological Concept (Lucretius Poems)
- The Song Of Hiawatha V: Hiawatha's Fasting (Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Poems)
- The Triumph Of Melancholy (James Beattie Poems)
- Devon's Poly-Obion (Joanna Baillie Poems)