Now, up to this point, the story tells of how the noble Thebian brothers Arcite and Palamon have come to challange eachother to a duel over whom will win Emily, the love of their lives, whom they have spent many years worshiping (quite voyeuristically) from Duke Theseus's prison. By Theseus's decree, the duel would take place in a great Colosseum built explicitly for this one purpose. The following lines of beautiful verse poetry (all in iambic pentameter!) describe this Colosseum - a tribute to the God's whom, as many believed back in those days, lived in the heavens as stars and planets. The three focal points of the Colosseum are the monuments built in honor of Mars, Venus, and Diana. ENJOY!
I know that men would deem it negligence
If I forgot to tell of the expense
To which Duke Theseus went busily
To build the lists. He built them royally,
A theatre so noble standing there 1885
I daresay none was finer anywhere.
Its circuit measured one full mile about,
Its wall of stone, a circling moat without.
As surely as a compass it was round,
And sixty rows it stood above the ground, 1890
So that a man on one row wouldn't be
The reason that another couldn't see.
On the east stood a great, white marble gate,
Another on the west. I'll briefly state,
Concluding, there was no such other place 1895
In all the earth that took so little space.
For there was not one craftsman in the land
With math and his geometry in hand,
No single sculptor or one painter, who
Duke Theseus did not hire for the crew 1900
That worked on this theatre. So that he
Might sacrifice, do all rites properly,
At the eastern gate he had built above,
In honor of Venus, goddess of love,
An altar and an oratory. Then, 1905
Above the west gate, he constructed in
The memory of Mars the very same;
A cart of gold was spent in Mars's name.
In a turret, built on the northern wall
In coral and white alabaster all, 1910
The duke had nobly wrought an oratory
Magnificent see, built for the glory
Of Diana, most chaste of deities.
Yet I've forgotten to describe with these
The sculptures, paintings, noble works of art, 1915
The shapes and figures that were all a part
Of the work in these oratories three.
In the temple of Venus you could see
(Wrought on the wall, and piteous to behold)
The broken sleep, the lonely sighs, the cold 1920
And sacred tears, the sad laments; the burning,
The fiery strokes of all desire and yearning
That servants of love in this life endure;
The oaths by which covenants they assure;
Pleasure and Hope, Desire, Foolhardiness, 1925
Beauty and Youth and Riches, Bawdiness,
Seduction, Force, Falsehood and Flattery,
Extravagance, Ado and Jealousy
(Who wears a garland, yellow marigolds,
And in her hand a bird, the cuckoo, holds); 1930
The banquets, instruments, the carols, dances,
Lust and array. All of the circumstances
Of love that I'm recounting here were all
In proper order painted on the wall--
And more than I'd be able to recount, 1935
For truly all the Cytherean mount,
The place where Venus has her major dwelling,
Was in the scenes on that wall for the telling
With all its gardens and its lustfulness.
Nor was forgotten the porter Idleness, 1940
Nor Narcissus, that ancient, fairest one,
Nor all the folly of King Solomon,
Nor yet the mighty strength of Hercules,
Medea's enchanting power nor Circe's,
Nor Turnus with a heart so fierce and bold, 1945
Nor Croesus, rich but captive with his gold.
So you can see that neither wisdom, wealth,
Nor beauty, sleight, nor strength nor hardy health
Can hold with Venus an equality,
For as she wills she guides the world to be. 1950
Look how these people, caught up in her snare,
So often cried "Alas!" in their despair.
Suffice here these examples one or two,
Though I could tell a thousand more to you.
Venus's statue, glorious to behold, 1955
Was naked, and the sea about her rolled,
As from her navel down were shown to pass
Green waves that were as bright as any glass.
She had a harp in her right hand, and she
Had on her head, a seemly sight to see, 1960
A fresh rose garland, fragrant as the spring.
Above her head her doves were flickering.
Before her Cupid stood, who is her son;
He had two wings and was superbly done,
And blind he was, as is so often seen. 1965
He held a bow, and arrows bright and keen.
Why should I not as well tell you of all
The paintings that appeared upon the wall
In the temple of mighty Mars the Red?
From roof to floor the wall was overspread 1970
With painted scenes like in that grisly place
That's known as his great temple back in Thrace--
That cold and frosty region where, I'm told,
He has his sovereign mansion from of old.
A forest, first, was painted on the wall 1975
In which there dwelt no man nor beast at all.
Its knotty, knarled trees were bare and old,
The stubs were sharp and hideous to behold;
And through it ran a rumble and a sough
As if a storm would break off every bough. 1980
And downward from a hill, below the bent,
Stood the temple of Mars of Armament,
Made all of burnished steel. The entrance there
Was long and straight, indeed a sight to scare,
And out of it came such a raging wind 1985
The very gate was made to shake and bend.
In through the doors there shone the northern light
(No window being in that temple's height
Through which to see a single light). Each door
Was of eternal adamant and, more, 1990
Was reinforced as wide as well as long
With toughest iron. To make the temple strong,
Each pillar had the girth of any cask,
Each of bright shiny iron fit for the task.
There I first saw the dark imagination 1995
Of Felony, the scheme of its creation;
Cruel Ire that burns till like a coal it's red;
The pickpurse and the pallidness of Dread;
The smiler with the knife beneath his cloak;
The stable burning up with blackest smoke; 2000
The treachery of murder in the bed;
The wounds of open Warfare as they bled;
Strife with its threats and with its bloody knife.
With frightful sounds that sorry place was rife.
The suicide I saw, too, lying there, 2005
The blood of his own heart had bathed his hair;
The driven nail in someone's head by night;
Cold Death laid out, his mouth a gaping sight;
Right in the temple's center sat Mischance,
Uncomforted, and sad his countenance; 2010
There I saw Madness laughing in his rage,
And armed Complaint, Outcry and fierce Outrage;
The carrion found in the bush (throat slit),
A thousand slain, no plague the cause of it;
The tyrant with his booty, battle's gains; 2015
The town laid waste till nothing now remains.
I saw the burning ships dance on the tide;
The hunter strangled by wild bears; I spied
The sow devour the child right in the cradle;
The scalded cook despite his lengthy ladle. 2020
Not one misfortune that Mars could impart
Was overlooked; the carter by his cart
Run over, underneath the wheel laid low.
Of those who follow Mars, there were also
The barber and the butcher, and the smith 2025
Who forges at the anvil, busy with
Sharp swords. Above, where seated in his tower,
I saw Conquest depicted in his power;
There was a sharpened sword above his head
That hung there by the thinnest simple thread. 2030
The killing, too, was shown of Julius,
Of mighty Nero, of Antonius--
Though at that time they all were still unborn,
Their deaths appeared upon that wall forlorn
By threat of Mars and by prefiguration. 2035
So it was shown in that wall's illustration
As is depicted in the stars above:
Who shall be slain and who shall die for love.
(Old stories tell it; one example's good,
I can't recount them all, although I would.) 2040
His statue on its chariot, lifelike
In arms and grim, looked mad enough to strike.
Two starry figures shone above his head,
Puella one (as in the old books read),
The other one as Rubeus was known. 2045
That's how this god of armament was shown.
There was a wolf before him at his feet
With red eyes, as a man he set to eat.
With subtle brush depicted was the story
Of Mars, redoubtable in all his glory. 2050
Now to the temple of Diana chaste
As briefly as I can I'll turn with haste
To give you a description that's complete.
The walls all up and down were made replete
With scenes of hunting and of chastity. 2055
I saw how sad Callisto came to be
(When she had caused Diana some despair)
Changed from a woman first into a bear
And then into the lodestar. (That's the way
That it was painted, what more can I say?) 2060
Her son's also a star, as men may see.
There I saw Daphne turned into a tree.
(Diana I don't mean, she's not the same;
Peneus's daughter, Daphne her name.)
I saw Actaeon turned into a hart 2065
(He saw Diana nude, which wasn't smart),
And then I saw his hounds run and surprise him
And eat him up (they didn't recognize him).
And painted on the wall was furthermore
How Atalanta hunted after boar, 2070
As did Meleager and some others (though
For this Diana brought Meleager woe).
I also saw there many a wondrous tale
On which I'd rather let my memory fail.
This goddess on a hart had taken seat, 2075
And there were slender hounds about her feet,
And underneath her feet there was a moon
(One that was waxing, to be waning soon).
Her statue was arrayed in green; she wore
A quiver filled, her bow in hand she bore. 2080
Her eyes were looking down, extremely so,
Toward Pluto's dark region far below.
Before her was a woman in travail,
Trying to have her child to no avail
As to Lucina she began to call, 2085
"Please help me, for your help's the best of all!"
How lifelike were these scenes the artist wrought!
The paint cost many a florin that he bought.
Now when these lists were finished, Theseus,
Who'd gone to great expense in building thus 2090
The theatre and temples, was elated
With all of it as finally consummated.
On Theseus I'll cease now if I might,
Of Palamon to speak and of Arcite.
