The shape, the contenance, of the figures That weren in these oratories three. First, in the temple of Venus, maist thou see, Wrought on the wall, ful pitous to beholde, The broken slepes, and the sikes cold, The sacred teres, and the waimentinges, The firy strokes of the desiringes, That Loves servantes in this lif enduren, The othes that hir covenants assuren. Plesance and Hope, Desire, Foolhardinesse, Beaute and Youth, Baudrie and Richesse, Charmes and Force, Lesinges and Flaterie, Dispence, Besinesse, and Jalousie, That wered of yelwe goldes a gerlond, And hadde a cuckow sitting on hire hond; Festes, instruments, and caroles, and dances, Lust and array, and all the circumstances Of Love, which that I reken, and reken shall, By ordre weren peinted on the wall, And mo than I can make of mention: For sothly all the mount of Citheron, Ther Venus hath hire principal dwelling, Was shewed on the wall in purtreying, With all the gardin, and the lustinesse: Nought was foryetten the porter Idlenesse, Ne Narcissus the fayrr, of yore agone, Ne yet the folie of King Salomon, Ne yet the grete strengthe of Hercules. The enchantment of Medea and Circes, Ne of Turnus the hardy fiers corage, The riche Cresus, caitif in servage. Thus may ye seen, that wisdom ne richesse, Beaute ne sleighte, strengthe ne hardinesse, Ne may with Venus holden champartie; For as hire liste, the world may she gie. Lo, all these folk so caught were in hire las, Til they for wo ful often said, Alas! Sufficeth here ensamples on or two, And yet I coud reken a thousand mo. The statue of Venus, glorious for to see, Was naked fleting in the large see, And, fro the navel doun, all covered was With wawes grene, and bright as any glas: A citole in hire right hand hadde she, And on hire hed, ful semely for to see, A rose gerlond fresh, and wel smelling; Above hire hed, hire doves fleckering; Before hire stood hire sone Cupido; Upon his shoulders winges had he two, And blind he was, as it is often sene; A bow he bare, and arwes bright and kene. Why shuld I not as wel eke tell you all The purtreiture that was upon the wall, Within the temple of mighty Mars the rede? All peinted was the wall in length and brede, Like to the estres of the grisly place That highte the gret temple of Mars in Trace: In thilke colde and frosty region, Ther as Mars hath his sovereine mansion. First, on the wall was peinted a forest, In which ther wonneth nyther man ne best, With knotty knarry barrien trees old, Of stubbes sharpe, and hidous to behold. In which ther ran a romble and a swough, As though a storme shuld bresten every bough; And dounward from an hill, under a bent, Ther stood the temple of Mars armipotent,