Euryalus: EDITH WHARTON
Upward we went by fields of asphodel,
Leaving Ortygia’s moat-bound walls below;
By orchards, where the windflowers’ drifted snow
Lay lightly heaped upon the turf’s light swell;
By gardens, whence upon the wayside fell
Jasmine and rose in April’s overflow:
Till, winding up in Epipolae’s wide brow,
We reached at last the lonely citadel.
There, on the ruined rampart climbing high,
We sat and dreamed among the browsing sheep,
Until we heard the trumpet’s startled cry
Waking a clang of arms about the keep,
And seaward saw, with rapt foreboding eye,
The sails of Athen whiten on the deep.
December 1889
Euryalus refers to the fortress, the main citadel of Ancient Syracuse, an historic city on the Italian island of Sicily. Syracuse is located in the southeast corner of Sicily, and Ortygia is located at the eastern end of Syracuse. Epipolae is an ancient fortified plateau west of Syracuse, which was enclosed with walls. Today, UNESCO has listed Syracuse as a World Heritage Site.
Photographer: Martina Nicolls
MARTINA NICOLLS – MartinaNicollsWebsite
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