The Argonautica

been unyoked by the hands of his own dearly beloved wife;

I recognize no mother save this ship, visible here:

Argo herself, who bears each hero in her belly,

groans beneath the unceasing weight of her grievous labors.

But with mighty, unyielding force and strong, untiring shoulders

we lift her high on shoulders, bear her through the sandy land,

where the swift horse has already driven his feet onward.

He will not sink beneath dry earth; his hoofprints surely

will mark a hidden inlet lying above the sea.

So Peleus said; and his well-aimed plan pleased all of them.

This is the Muses' story; I sing as an obedient servant

to the Pierides, and heard this utterance wholly and truly:

you, O by far the greatest sons descended from gods,

by your own strength and courage across Libya's desert dunes

carried Argo aloft with all her inward gear

lifting her high on your shoulders, to bear her twelve whole

days joined with nights. What hardship, what deep anguish

could one recount that heroes suffered in harsh, weary labor?

In truth, their blood was drawn from the deathless gods, to face

so great a labor, borne beneath necessity. Onward

gladly they bore her far to Lake Triton's waters,

and entering, joyfully set her down from their strong shoulders!

Then, rushing forward like hounds in a rabid frenzy,

they eagerly searched for a spring, for a dry and parching thirst