Alexander Blok
Ravenna

All transient regimes that crumbled
All fleeting rules that were effaced
Have not disturbed Ravenna's slumber,
Lulled in eternity's embrace.

The toiling slaves no longer carry
Mosaics through the Roman gates.
And glowing sunset colors tarry
On tall cathedrals' golden plates.

And with a tender touch of moisture
Rough stones seem softer, turning green,
Under the vaults of empty cloisters
Where rest the hallowed monks and queens.

The tombs are silent and forsaken,
So that the sizzling fiery gaze
Of Galla, should she be awakened,
Won't set the somber stones ablaze.

The bloody traces of fierce battles
From memory have been erased,
Placidia's voice will not unsettle
The passion of those bygone days.

The sea has far away receded
The walls are with wild roses wreathed,
And Theodoric won't be heeding
All lire's commotion from beneath.

The bare empty earth is flattened,
The vineyards are forever gone.
On tombs. the sounds of solemn Latin
Recall the trumpets' clear tones.

And only in Ravenna maidens
A passerby will sometimes note
Their timid look with sadness laden
About the sea, now long remote.

At night, peering into future ages,
His famous profile aquiline,
Great Dante turns his New Life pages
And sings to me its sacred lines.

Translated by Olga Dumer