A Tale Told by Atheneus (Venus Callipygus)
By Marie Ponsot
Two sisters of ancient Greece both laid claim
To the finest, fairest rear of their time.
Which tail forged ahead? Which bottom’s true fame
Topped? Which back was in front, which terce most prime?
A judge chose the elder girl’s back matter;
Her finish was more fine and far matter.
She got the prize, and his heart; soon they wed.
“But the younger’s sitter’s not a smatter
Less meet; I’ll marry her,” his brother said.
It went so well, their joys were so perfected,
That after them a temple was erected
In honor of Venus Callipygus.
No other church — though I don’t know its rite —
Could so, from head to epididymis,
Move me with deep devotion to its site.
Translated from the French of Jean de La Fontaine, Contes, Part I, 6.
Copyright Credit: From Springing: New and Selected Poems by Marie Ponsot, copyright © 2002 by Marie Ponsot. Used by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House, Inc. Any third party use of this material, outside of this publication, is prohibited. Interested parties must apply directly to Random House, Inc. for permission.