Thy lips from silence dead redeemed;

But, dying ere the moment ripe

When thou should’st gather vital fire,

He left thee, a half-conscious type

Of Love and Love’s unvoiced desire.

Thou holdest me, thou holdest me,

O marble presence, cold and fair!

Now let thy prisoned soul be free,

Thy breast its long-sealed fate declare.

(The Statue speaks.)