Mary Barnard

"I wanted to hear Sappho’s laughter and the speech of her stringed shell.What I heard was whiskered mumble- ment of grammarians:Greek pterodactyls and Victorian dodos."

"Dapple-throned Aphrodite, eternal daughter of God, snare-knitter!"

"Some say a cavalry corps, some infantry, some, again, will maintain that the swift oars of our fleet are the finest sight on dark earth; but I say that whatever one loves, is."

"Like a hyacinth in the mountains, trampled by shepherds until only a purple stain remains on the ground."

"Hesperus, you herd homeward whatever Dawn’s light dispersedYou herd sheep—herd goats—herd children home to their mothers."