Niklas Rådström
Jacopo dell Sellaio and the Victory of Time
The white dog and the black dog are fighting,
two small angels are weighing the astrolabe
Oh, old Time rests
only on the balance of the crutches,
the sand has run out of the glasses,
a wriggling lizard the cane's top-piece
to be heard keeping time
as the days flee
The deer drawing the carriage each
abruptly departs his own way…
and the trees that always want to fall
into the picture and cover it
The black dog snaps
at the white dog's throat
The old castles are scattered,
the ruins speak the language of skeletons
On the pier the tower stands tensed
ready to fire across the water
The astrolabe spins in the angels' hands,
the face at its centre weeps violently
The splinters of many cultures lie here on the earth,
the old breathes heavily
and suddenly there's someone
within the crowd calling the Saviour's name
The people are gaily dressed up
for a ball, or the plague's entry
The wings on the aged back
are stiff with gold
And the dogs bark…
And the days pass…
A black phantom rides on a bull,
a herd of horses chase God from the sun
And the white dog barks…
And the black dog barks…
and the days pass…
the days pass…
Translated by Robin Fulton
Page(s) 11-12
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