M/M: In Honor of Cyparissus; Faustus Sabaeus

Ad Solem.

Hanc tibi, quam cernis, radiantem floribus oram,

propter aquae fluvium lucidioris habe.

Consecro, cunctorum o genitor, quae circuit orbis:

quae fati, et variant conscia signa poli.

Solstitiis utrisque, precor defende Cupressum;

ne noceant aestus, ne glacialis hiemis.

arbor enim Chariti nostrae dilecta perennet:

quondam cura tui, nunc mage cura mei.

----Faustus Sabaeus, Picta Poesis Ovidiana (1580) 

To the Sun:

Cherish this tree you see before you

upon this shore blossoming with flowers

beside these clear waters.

O Creator of All Things,

Who Knows What Fate holds,

Who Moves the Heavens of each solstice,

I consecrate this tree.

I beg you to defend the Cypress [Cyparissus] 

let neither the heat of summer

nor the ice of winter harm him.

May this beloved tree endure

formerly cherished by you, now even more so cherished by me.