VIII. Ballad: King Of Cyprus
Once lived a King of Cyprus famed
Who held all women folk in disdain
He eluded wedlock, never to be tamed
While his people, they cried prayers in vain
Venus at last chose to answer their call
From the heavens she flew as a dove
The patron goddess to them Cyprians all
The great Goddess of beauty and love.
Her ethereal visage appeared at night
The King of Cyprus awoke to a dream
For there stood a vision in candlelight
With satin hair and ivory skin agleam
She ordained the King to her divine will
To finally bind himself in matrimony
A fortnight was all she would give till
For him to perform the sacred ceremony
But the King was a rather clever man
And the goddess renowned for her vanity
He swore to carry out the goddess's plan
But only after he carved her beauty of rarity
The delighted daughter of Jupiter agreed
For the King was a sculptor able
But after her depart the King laughed indeed
The sculpture was only to be a fable
The King had possessed no intentions
Of ever completing the promised sculpture
Hence he carried on great pretentions
Thus forever evading his pending capture
Yet fickle Inspiration alas had schemes
His artist soul it haunted and sought
And thus the King yearned 'twould seem
To finish what he swore he would not
His fingers gliding, so nimble, so agile
Carved the ivory day in and night
He stormed and toiled and would even rile
He was fire ablaze and burning bright
He whittled, hewed and cut with care
Till he formed a maiden so very fair
No mortal woman could ever compare
The maiden held his heart ensnare
She was so uncommonly beautiful
The King fell in love with this creation own
His love was tragic and much painful
For the maiden, after all, was only cold stone
Speaking to her in whispers soft and tender
While stroking her smooth skin in awe
He adorned her in silks and great splendor
The King claimed she had no flaw
His touch was reverent and so light
'Twas as though he feared to bruise
Her cool skin pale and ivory white
He treated her like a woman one woos
But when he leaned down to claim a kiss
From her lips of cold marble unyielding
It dawned upon him there was no bliss
Only anguish and much thwarted feeling
Upon his knees he fell and wept
And his arms were raised to pray
There he stood; he never slept
Till Venus finally appeared one day
The King narrated his tragic fate
His love for the maiden of stone
And only her he would ever mate
Only her he would ever make own
"If my destiny is to love solely her
Then Goddess turn me to stone!
So I will stand by her side forever
An eternity! I relinquish my throne"
Venus who moved, by his sincerity
Deemed that he had enough atone
With her immortal powers of divinity
She breathed life into the stone
In blood and flesh and in bone
The fair maiden had come to life
The King finally made her his own
He called her Galatea and his wife
Their tale grew to become lore
Rejoiced amongst the Cyprians
But till today the world has bore
The Legend that is of Pygmalion.