The stone unhewn and cold
Becomes a living mould,
The more the marble wastes
read more

The stone unhewn and cold
Becomes a living mould,
The more the marble wastes
The more the statue grows.

Then marble, soften'd into life, grew warm.

Then marble, soften'd into life, grew warm.

The best artist has that thought alone Which is contained within the marble shell; The sculptor's hand can only break read more

The best artist has that thought alone Which is contained within the marble shell; The sculptor's hand can only break the spell To free the figures slumbering in the stone

Not from a vain or shallow thought
His awful Jove young Phidias brought.

Not from a vain or shallow thought
His awful Jove young Phidias brought.

So stands the statue that enchants the world,
So bending tries to veil the matchless boast,
The read more

So stands the statue that enchants the world,
So bending tries to veil the matchless boast,
The mingled beauties of exulting Greece.

The marble index of a mind forever
Voyaging through strange seas of thought, alone.

The marble index of a mind forever
Voyaging through strange seas of thought, alone.

I did my sculpture as a painter. I did not work as a sculptor.

I did my sculpture as a painter. I did not work as a sculptor.

And the cold marble leapt to life a God.

And the cold marble leapt to life a God.

The Paphian Queen to Cnidos made repair
Across the tide to see her image there:
Then looking read more

The Paphian Queen to Cnidos made repair
Across the tide to see her image there:
Then looking up and round the prospect wide,
When did Praxiteles see me thus? she cried.