To a garden luxuriously verdant . . .

To a garden luxuriously verdant
and enamelled with countless flowers,
there came one day the two goddesses
of Love, and of dense forests and Hunting.

Then Diana plucked a perfect rose
and Venus the best of the red lilies,
but exceeding by far all the other flowers
in beauty and grace were the violas.

They asked Cupid, who was standing near,
which of the blooms, in his opinion,
was sweetest, purest and most lovely?

The youngster answered with a grin:
— all three are gorgeous, but I much prefer
viola-tion to mere rose and lily.

To a garden luxuriously verdant . . .

Num jardim adornado de verdura
a que esmaltam por cima várias flores,
entrou um dia a deusa dos amores,
com a deusa da caça e da espessura.

Diana tomou logo ũa rosa pura,
Vénus um roxo lírio, dos milhores;
mas excediam muito às outras flores
as violas, na graça e fermosura.

Perguntam a Cupido, que ali estava,
qual daquelas três flores tomaria,
por mais suave, pura e mais fermosa?

Sorrindose, o Minino lhe tornava:
todas fermosas são, mas eu queria
Viol’antes que lírio, nem que rosa.