STILL LIFE

Pale globes of fragrant ripeness, amber grapes

And purple, on a silver dish; a glass

Of wine, in which light glows, and fires to pass

Staining the damask, and in dance escapes;

Two Venice goblets wrought in graceful shapes;

A bowl of velvet pansies, wherein mass

Blues, mauves, and purples; plumes of meadow-grass;

And one ripe pomegranate, that splits and gapes,

Protruding ruby seeds: a feast for eyes

Better than all those topaz, beryl fruits

Aladdin saw and coveted: these call,

To minds contented and in leisure wise,

Visions of blossoming boughs, and mossy roots,

And peaches ripening on a sunny wall.