1. That tale runs in the sky
And towards a gentle Theseus it runs

2. Where the builder Ares, of the radiant palace
Erected a towering citadel of brass

3. Rising loftily in eternity, firmly rooted forever
He sweated profusely creating it

4. Operating the bellows and kindling a fire
Twenty tables he had turned

5. Dazzling the eyes on the wall
Raised on ivory pillars to the utmost wonder

6. By themselves for the council of masters
Speeding back and forth hastily

7. Perfect but for the clasps of the handles
Along with their chains, finely wrought

8. Before him the anvil was heated
Kept busy whenever Thetis approached

9. She saw him, his wedding spoiled
So she hastened to touch him gently

10. And greeted him with great delight
O lady of the veiled mantle

11. Thetis, our venerated aunt
Why do you stay with us

12. Contrary to your pleasant custom?
Come, let us take you where we host guests

13. And she seated her comfortably on a throne
A wondrous, precisely measured chair

14. Short of pure tin, of hardened
Surface, with a footrest for sitting

15. And called her husband in a loud voice
"Hephaestus, come! Thetis seeks your aid"

16. He said “Welcome to a goddess so grand
She who has relieved me of sorrow

17. When my mother threw me from the heavens
They hid my deformity with kind condolences

18. For she is generous, stamp of favor
Daughter of the raging, dreadful ocean

19. Who received me first, so I was not miserable
And sheltered me in the abyss of the cavern

20. Nine years, secreted in the veil
Except them two, none in earth or sky

21. Knew of my distant abode
They, they eased my misery

22. And now Thetis sits before me
How can I pay the debt of gratitude?

23. Charis waited on her courteously
So I may rest my bellows and prepare

24. And the master left her, turning away
Dragging his feet, the hot embers beside him

25. He placed his bellows in a silver urn
Then headed to a sponge

26. Wiping his chest and tall forehead
His hands too and sturdy neck

27. Then wore a gown and went on
Leaning on a dazzling, solid golden scepter

28. In one hand a heavy hammer
In the other, long tongs

29. He stood tall, fully engaged
And started his craftsmanship

30. A great shield, of wondrous quality
Its elegant rim above the rest

31. Encircled by three layers
On supports of refined tin

32. Gleaming over five discs of metal
He engraved it with a design to marvel

33. At its beauty of sights and ideas
For the land and sky and seas

34. Appeared upon it in their glory
The radiant sun and the full moon

35. And he formed on it the multitude of stars
Like a pendant of clustered jewels

36. The Pleiades, Orion, and the Giant
A bear, called the Wain, revolving

37. Through which the ocean cannot be sated
And two cities crowded with people, one of them

38. With mortals and demigods
Where the brides and grooms wed

39. Amid singing, torchlights
And dancing youths frolic and rejoice

40. To the tune of lutes and drums
Resounding, and women at the gates

41. Standing, captivated by the procession
And others of the crowd erect

42. There, two men prolong a dispute
Over blood-money for a slain man

43. One claims to pay it in full
The other denies utterly

44. And demands judgment from the arbiter
Both seek the ruling of the judge

45. While the angry and contentious people
Clamor, to which is right

46. In their quarrel, and soldiers lined up
Command silence, to settle the case

47. There, elders of the guard
On stone benches sitting solemn

48. Stood, for all the nations to see
Their weapons by their sides pronouncing judgment

49. One by one, rendering their verdicts
Before those columns, solemnly

50. Golden scepters between them
For the one who rules justly, to fend off blame

51. The other city Hephaestus sketched
Two armies around it attacked

52. One band resolved to raze it
The other half the money seeks as spoils

53. Its people fortified themselves behind walls
A hidden ambush they prepared

54. And atop their ramparts stood
The elders, women and children

55. Before them, the lord of valiant deeds
Like shelter for the distressed

56. Both sculpted fully of gleaming
Gold in body, clothes and arms

57. You would think them alive
Supremely wrought by the artist's hands

58. As if stamped by immortals, above all flaws
They reached the ford of a flowing river

59. Where the flock drinks and cavorts
There they stood with spear and bow

60. Lying in wait for the herders' approach
So two cowherds came forward

61. Playing the flute, heedless
Of the ambush, carefree

62. Who leapt out and killed the lads
And slaughtered the cattle, the worst massacre

63. Their cries rose loud
Reaching the enemy hosts

64. Who rushed in a fierce onslaught
And grappled, exchanging lethal blows

65. A downpour of blades over the walls
Between them chaos and din

66. As well as the deadly fate
Looming over the old man

67. Blood dripping from his cloak
Some flee him, others take flight

68. Another grasps men by the feet
Dragging corpses from the fray

69. You see those figures on the shield
Seem to move, vividly drawn

70. Dragging away their dead, scattered about
Below this scene, a fertile field

71. Three plowmen worked in fact
Upturning the sod in straight furrows

72. Sipping the sweet wine
As a boy brings them a cup, next to their plow

73. They turn, leaving the plow erect
At each end, full of fortitude

74. There, the landowner between them
Silent, watching their diligence

75. Leaning on his staff, smiling
Seeing the blessing of abundance

76. Under an oak tree, grapes are prepared
They slaughtered an ox, all busied themselves

77. The women assisted their work
Cutting the fine meat

78. Distributing it on mats
Likewise a vine of forged branches

79. Laden, stooping with the weight of grapes
Its poles silver that did not tarnish

80. Framed by a ditch and dry moat
Accessible only by one path

81. Which the vintagers cross in season
And returning, the maidens' ambitions

82. Pick and place each harvest
In their baskets, the ripe clusters

83. Crimson between them, a maiden dancing
With lyre playing soft tunes

84. And they sing the song of Linos
Lilting melodies, keeping time

85. Beating the ground, moved by the rhythm
Below this, a herd of cattle

86. Molten metal, some tawny
Surging, bellowing towards the hills

87. Near a river, amid green reeds
Four herders of tin watch over them

88. And nine dogs assist their guarding
Two lions, terrifying to behold

89. Pounced, slaughtering a bull they coveted
Tearing it apart, gorging, draining its blood

90. The herders behind them enraged
Their hounds bristled at the violence

91. Fled in fear, panicked by their fury
Further below, well-built sheepfolds

92. Near shelters pleasing to the eye
Among cottages, by a blossoming meadow

93. And copses atop the verdant glade
Nearby, a scene of alluring dance

94. As if carved with wondrous skill
Youths and maidens on the soft meadow

95. Dancing, as Ariadne relived sweet memories
Clad in olive oil gleaming attire

96. The maidens' beauty itself spoke
Their jewelry, swords of fired clay

97. Drawn from the mint of Hephaestus
But their crown was a garland of flowers

98. Joining palm to palm and thumb
They danced with rhythm and skill

99. As if their feet were potter's wheels
Thrown by the master craftsman

100. Drawing line after line in succession
Around them a crowd, and among them

101. A singer with mellifluous voice
As the strings were plucked, two youths

102. Began their dance, repeating his song
And when those marvels were done

103. The Ocean's streams he placed on the rim
The shield then completed, he forged

104. Armor as radiant as the sun's brilliance
Fit only for that warrior's chest

105. And a helmet with a graceful crest
Of heavy tin and burnished

106. Bronze, for that glorious hero
And greaves of supple, polished

107. Brass he hammered fully
When all those treasures were finished

108. He cast them before the mother of Achilles
An artisan's gift for the mortals

109. And she darted from the shining Olympus
Bore them swiftly as a diving hawk