Of The Shop

Constantine P. Cavafy 1863 (Alexandria) – 1933 (Alexandria)



He wrapped them carefully, neatly
in costly green silk.

Roses of ruby, lilies of pearl,
violets of amethyst. As he himself judged,

as he wanted them, they look beautiful to him; not as he saw
or studied them in nature. He will leave them in the safe,

a sample of his daring and skillful craft.
When a buyer enters the shop

he takes from the cases other wares and sells -- superb jewels --
bracelets, chains, necklaces, and rings.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 31, 2023

24 sec read
39

Quick analysis:

Scheme XX XX XX XX XX
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 437
Words 81
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 2, 2, 2, 2, 2

Constantine P. Cavafy

Constantine P. Cavafy was a Greek poet who lived in Alexandria and worked as a journalist and civil servant. He published 154 poems; dozens more remained incomplete or in sketch form. His most important poetry was written after his fortieth birthday. more…

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