Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- Preface
- Textual Note
- Introduction
- 1 Doris, or the Shepherd’s Complaint
- 2 To Anna R.[oemers]
- 3 [From] Batava Tempe: That Is the Lime-avenue of The Hague
- 4 The Exiled Shepherd: To the Lord Daniel Heinsius, Knight etc.
- 5 The Character of an Ambassador
- 6 Ship’s Talk, on the Death of Prince Maurits
- 7 To the Lady Tesselschade Crombalch with My Translations from the English Poems of Dr Donne
- 8 To Barlaeus
- 9 On the Death of Tesselschade’s Eldest Daughter, and on Her Husband Thereafter Bleeding to Death
- 10 The White Moon
- 11 The Mist Descending
- 12 The First Stone of the Marksmen’s School in The Hague, Laid by Prince William of Orange, on the Day of Public Prayer, 2 December 1636
- 13 To Stella, My Dearest Wife, Now Dead
- 14 [From] The Day’s Work: The Order of the House
- 15 In Her Snow-cold Arms
- 16 Prayer for the Holy Communion
- 17 The Lake
- 18 The Holy Communion
- 19 New Year
- 20 Good Friday
- 21 Pentecost
- 22 Christmas
- 23 Easter
- 24 To Tesselschade
- 25 On the Roses of the Most Eminent Painter, Daniel Seegers
- 26 To Tesselschade, Departing
- 27 To Albert Dürer on His Engraved Picture
- 28 On the Holy Communion
- 29 Again on the Holy Communion
- 30 [From] Hofwijk
- 31 Awakening
- 32 To the Lady Luchtenburgh, with My Poems Translated from the English of Donne
- 33 Again on Painting
- 34 On the Frontispiece of Korenbloemen
- 35 On the Grave of Jacob van Campen
- 36 The Vanity of Dreams
- 37 On an Engraved Glass
- 38 On My Birthday
- 39 Consolation of the Eyes, to the Lady of St Annaland
- 40 On the Holy Communion
- 41 Stillness and Snow after Storm and High Water
- 42 My Puppy’s Epitaph
- Appendix I A Selection of Huygens’ Poems in Modern European Languages
- Appendix II A Selection of Huygens’ Writings in English
- Appendix III Huygens and English Literature
- Appendix IV Additional Poems on Painting
- Bibliography
- Index of Titles and First Lines
- Amsterdam Studies in the Dutch Golden Age
7 - To the Lady Tesselschade Crombalch with My Translations from the English Poems of Dr Donne
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 09 February 2021
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- Preface
- Textual Note
- Introduction
- 1 Doris, or the Shepherd’s Complaint
- 2 To Anna R.[oemers]
- 3 [From] Batava Tempe: That Is the Lime-avenue of The Hague
- 4 The Exiled Shepherd: To the Lord Daniel Heinsius, Knight etc.
- 5 The Character of an Ambassador
- 6 Ship’s Talk, on the Death of Prince Maurits
- 7 To the Lady Tesselschade Crombalch with My Translations from the English Poems of Dr Donne
- 8 To Barlaeus
- 9 On the Death of Tesselschade’s Eldest Daughter, and on Her Husband Thereafter Bleeding to Death
- 10 The White Moon
- 11 The Mist Descending
- 12 The First Stone of the Marksmen’s School in The Hague, Laid by Prince William of Orange, on the Day of Public Prayer, 2 December 1636
- 13 To Stella, My Dearest Wife, Now Dead
- 14 [From] The Day’s Work: The Order of the House
- 15 In Her Snow-cold Arms
- 16 Prayer for the Holy Communion
- 17 The Lake
- 18 The Holy Communion
- 19 New Year
- 20 Good Friday
- 21 Pentecost
- 22 Christmas
- 23 Easter
- 24 To Tesselschade
- 25 On the Roses of the Most Eminent Painter, Daniel Seegers
- 26 To Tesselschade, Departing
- 27 To Albert Dürer on His Engraved Picture
- 28 On the Holy Communion
- 29 Again on the Holy Communion
- 30 [From] Hofwijk
- 31 Awakening
- 32 To the Lady Luchtenburgh, with My Poems Translated from the English of Donne
- 33 Again on Painting
- 34 On the Frontispiece of Korenbloemen
- 35 On the Grave of Jacob van Campen
- 36 The Vanity of Dreams
- 37 On an Engraved Glass
- 38 On My Birthday
- 39 Consolation of the Eyes, to the Lady of St Annaland
- 40 On the Holy Communion
- 41 Stillness and Snow after Storm and High Water
- 42 My Puppy’s Epitaph
- Appendix I A Selection of Huygens’ Poems in Modern European Languages
- Appendix II A Selection of Huygens’ Writings in English
- Appendix III Huygens and English Literature
- Appendix IV Additional Poems on Painting
- Bibliography
- Index of Titles and First Lines
- Amsterdam Studies in the Dutch Golden Age
Summary
Translation falls as short of untranslated verse
As shadows of the substance: shadows are of night.
But your discrimination's power should not condemn them;
They’re noble women all, the daughters of the light.
And shadows are awry, like the face seen in the moon:
These poems are so too: but, if I dare to say it,
Like to the strengthless shadow on the earth extended
Some traces of the substance still can be discerned.
And shadows strengthless are, and darkling in our sight
As are these poems too: only to common eyes
Which cannot see beyond weak darkness of the shadow:
What shadow dares to bar the day from Tessel's eyes?
And shadows all are cold, but tepid at their warmest:
These poems are so too: their cold's but surface chill
With hidden fire within, like the cold breast of the lover,
The peppercorn is cold until you bite its fire.
And shadows nothings are, like dreams in the full day,
These poems are so too: but nothings bodied forth,
Know what fed my dream, which I digested into dreams:
I’d swallowed pith and all, before I dreamed and saw.
Come, cool Tesselschade, once my guest for solid fare,
See where my shame may lead; I dare to taunt your coldness,
Now, of your tolerance, I bid you dine with me
On cold, deformity, shades, nothings, dark.
Hoe lijvigh en hoe recht, hoe witt, hoe heet, hoe swaer
Waer 't Engelsche gerecht, als uw vernuft kon dalen
Tot overzeesch gekoock in Nederland te halen,
En all dit laff gedroom een Tesselschaduw waer!
Maer ‘tzuyderlicker soet van Roomens schaduw-tael
Besitt uw besigh hert: Jerusalem langs Roomen
Op Tassos Lauwer-koets met Nederlandsche toomen
Te voeren daer ghij woont, bewoont v altemael.
(Hoe langsaem loopt die huer! Wanneer will 't besigh hert
Geleggen van die draght, en 't machtighe bekeeren
Dat Circe niet en kost, den Alckemaerder leeren,
Daer door de Schaduw ‘tlijf, en ‘tlijf de schaduw werdt?)
Soo viel mijn’ taeck Noord-west: die gaf mij uw bevel.
Myn’ onmacht beefde’r voor, en ‘tkon mijn’ hand ontroeren,
En, meend’ ick, ‘twas soo soet als qualick uijt te voeren;
Maer, ‘tQualick, dat ghij wilt, werdt van uw willen, Wel.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Selection of the Poems of Sir Constantijn Huygens (1596–1687)Revised, Second Edition, pp. 110 - 113Publisher: Amsterdam University PressPrint publication year: 2015