[14. To hit the sense of human sight:] to be gazed at by human eyes.
[18. Prince Memnon] was a fabled Ethiopian prince, black, and celebrated for his beauty. Recall Virgil’s nigri Memnonis arma.
[19. that starred Ethiop queen.] Cassiopeia, wife of the Ethiopian king Cepheus, boasted that she was more beautiful than the Nereids, for which act of presumption she was translated to the skies, where she became the beautiful constellation which we know by her name.
[23. bright-haired Vesta.] Vesta—in Greek, Hestia—“was the goddess of the home, the guardian of family life. Her spotless purity fitted her peculiarly to be the guardian of virgin modesty.”
[30. Whilst yet there was no fear of Jove], i.e. before Saturn was dethroned by Jupiter.
[33. All in a robe of darkest grain.] In Par. Lost V 285, the third pair of Raphael’s wings have the color of sky-tinctured grain; and XI 242, his vest is of purple livelier than “the grain of Sarra,” or Tyrian purple. This would leave us to infer that the robe of Melancholy is of a deep rich color, so dark as to be almost black. Dr. Murray quotes from Southey’s Thalaba, “The ebony ... with darkness feeds its boughs of raven grain.” What objection is there to making the grain in Milton’s passage black?
[35. And sable stole of cypress lawn.] Dr. Murray thus defines cypress lawn, “A light transparent material resembling cobweb lawn or crape; like the latter it was, when black, much used for habiliments of mourning.”
[37. Come; but keep thy wonted state.] Compare with this passage, L’Allegro 33.
[40. Thy rapt soul sitting in thine eyes.] In Cymbeline I 6 51 we find the present tense of the verb of which rapt is the participle: “What, dear Sir, thus raps you?” Do not confound this word with rap, meaning to strike.
[42. Forget thyself to marble.] With this compare [On Shakespeare 14].