539. To Julia, the Flaminica Dialis or Queen-Priest
Thou know'st, my Julia, that it is thy turnThis morning's incense to prepare and burn.The chaplet and Inarculum here be,With the white vestures, all attending thee.This day the queen-priest thou art made, t' appeaseLove for our very many trespasses.One chief transgression is, among the rest,Because with flowers her temple was not dressed;The next, because her altars did not shineWith daily fires; the last, neglect of wine;For which her wrath is gone forth to consumeUs all, unless preserved by thy perfume.Take then thy censer, put in fire, and thus,O pious priestess! make a peace for us.For our neglect Love did our death decree;That we escape. Redemption comes by thee.
Words in this poem
- chaplet n.
- A garland or wreath to be worn on the head. [F. chapelet, dim. of OF. chapel hat, garland, dim. fr. LL. cappa. See Cap, and cf. Chapelet, Chapeau.]
- censer n.
- A vessel for perfumes; esp. one in which incense is burned. [For incenser, fr. OF. encensier, F. encensoir, fr. LL. incensarium, incensorium, fr. L. incensum incense. See Incense, and cf. Incensory.]
- priestess n.
- A woman who officiated in sacred rites among pagans. Abp.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
539. To Julia, the Flaminica Dialis or Queen-Priest is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Hesperides & Noble Numbers: Vol. 1 and 2, Project Gutenberg ebook #22421; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Robert Herrick, 539. To Julia, the Flaminica Dialis or Queen-Priest, in Hesperides (1648), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #22421, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/herrick-hesperides/539-to-julia-the-flaminica-dialis-or-queen-priest.html, id L05511.
Form and metre
539. To Julia, the Flaminica Dialis or Queen-Priest is 16 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets: heroic couplets. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 83%). 98% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.1 syllables. 1 line ends on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 25% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in heroic couplets, other poems in iambic pentameter.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 1 AABBCCDDEEFFGGBB turnA · burnA · beB · theeB · appeaseC · trespassesC · restD · dressedD · shineE · wineE · consumeF · perfumeF · thusG · usG · decreeB · theeB
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against iambic pentameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Thou know'st, my Julia, that it is thy turn | 10 | ·········· |
| This morning's incense to prepare and burn. | 10 | ·/˘/··˘/·· |
| The chaplet and Inarculum here be, | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| With the white vestures, all attending thee. | 10 | ······˘/˘· |
| This day the queen-priest thou art made, t' appease | 11 | ·········˘/ |
| Love for our very many trespasses. | 11 | ··/˘/˘/˘/·˘ |
| One chief transgression is, among the rest, | 10 | ··˘/˘····· |
| Because with flowers her temple was not dressed; | 10 | ···/·/˘··· |
| The next, because her altars did not shine | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| With daily fires; the last, neglect of wine; | 10 | ·/˘/··˘/·· |
| For which her wrath is gone forth to consume | 10 | ········˘/ |
| Us all, unless preserved by thy perfume. | 10 | ····˘/··˘/ |
| Take then thy censer, put in fire, and thus, | 10 | ···/˘··/·· |
| O pious priestess! make a peace for us. | 10 | ·/˘/˘····· |
| For our neglect Love did our death decree; | 10 | ·/˘/··/·˘/ |
| That we escape. Redemption comes by thee. | 10 | ··˘/˘/˘··· |
The reader shows the same poem with its rhymes coloured and a stress row above each line, the notes beside their stanzas, and any word's definition on a tap; the analysis page takes the whole book apart. How every part of this site was made.