“No water so still as the
dead fountains of Versailles.” No swan,
with swart blind look askance
and gondoliering legs, so fine
as the chinz china one with fawn-
brown eyes and toothed gold
collar on to show whose bird it was.
Lodged in the Louis Fifteenth
candelabrum-tree of cockscomb-
tinted buttons, dahlias,
sea-urchins, and everlastings,
it perches on the branching foam
of polished sculptured
flowers–at ease and tall. The king is dead.
(Marianne Moore)
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Based on Topics: Kings & Queens PoemsBased on Keywords: buttons, lodged, louis, swart, sculptured, askance, fawn, branching, dahlias, perches, versailles