In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

The Byzantine Period 218 Paulus Silentiarius An official at the court of Justinian ca. 560 ce. He wrote about eighty epigrams in the Anthology, including some of the liveliest love poems. Visions A man bitten by a mad hound, they say, sees an image of the beast in the water. Is Eros then wild with rabies? Did he gash me with his bitter tooth and ravage my spirit with his heat? For now I see your darling form mirrored in winecup, river whirlpool and the sea. Taboo My fingers on her breasts, our mouths joined; I graze with deep fury on her silver neck; yet though I labor over Aphrogeneia this virgin lets me go so far—and denies me her bed. Her upper body she allows to Aphrodite, but her under parts she commits to chaste Athena. I waste away between. 219 Paulus Silentiarius Purity Beautiful girl, let us cast off these garments. Let our naked limbs be knotted so that no space is left between. To me the clothes you wear are as strong as the great wail of Babylon.* Let us press chest against chest, mouth into mouth, and plunge the rest into silence. I cannot bear trivial chatter. * Wall erected by Semiramis. ...

Share