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Since brass, nor stone, nor earth, nor boundless sea
But sad mortality o'ersways their power,
How with this rage shall beauty hold a plea,
Whose action is no stronger than a flower?
O, how shall summer's honey breath hold out
Against the wrackful siege of batt'ring days,
When rocks impregnable are not so stout,
Nor gates of steel so strong, but Time decays?
O fearful meditation! where, alack,
Shall Time's best jewel from Time's chest lie hid?
Or what strong hand can hold his swift foot back?
Or who his spoil of beauty can forbid?
O, none, unless this miracle have might,
That in black ink my love may still shine bright.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616), appears in Sonnets, no. 65 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Walter Aschaffenburg (b. 1927), "Since brass, nor stone, nor earth, nor boundless sea", op. 14 no. 2 (1966-7), first performed 1967 [ tenor and piano ], from Three Shakespeare Sonnets, no. 2 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco (1895 - 1968), "Sonnet LXV - Since brass, nor stone", op. 125 (Shakespeare Sonnets), Heft 1 no. 11 (1944-7) [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Grace Chadbourne , "Sonnet LXV" [ contralto and piano ], from Shakespeare Song Cycle, no. 6 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Juliana Hall (b. 1958), "Since brass, nor stone, nor earth, nor boundless sea ", 2000, first performed 2001 [ baritone and piano ], from Love's Pilgrimage -- 5 songs for Baritone and Piano, no. 5 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Richard Simpson (1820 - 1876), "Sonnet LXV", 1865 [ medium voice or high voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Isabel Soveral (b. 1961), "Since brass, nor stone", 2007 [ soprano and electronics ], from Shakespeare's Cycle , no. 1 [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (François-Victor Hugo) , no title, appears in Sonnets de Shakespeare, no. 65, first published 1857
- ITA Italian (Italiano) (Ferdinando Albeggiani) , copyright © 2025, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2009-09-16
Line count: 14
Word count: 112
Poiché né bronzo, né pietra, né terra, né lo sconfinato mare
potranno vincere la morte e il suo tetro potere,
come potrà la bellezza questa furia contrastare
se la sua azione non è più forte di quella di un fiore?
Oh, come potrà resistere il profumo di miele dell'estate
Contro l'assedio feroce dei giorni di tempesta,
se non sono poi così salde le rocce inespugnate,
né forti le porte d'acciaio, che il tempo poi devasta?
O spaventoso pensiero! Ahimè, come rubare
il più prezioso gioiello che il tempo nel suo scrigno possiede?
Quale robusta mano potrà fermare il tempo e il suo veloce piede?
Chi il suo bottino di bellezza riuscirà a impedire?
Oh, nessuno, a meno che questo miracolo non si possa avverare,
grazie all’inchiostro nero che all’amor mio lustro potrà dare.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- Translation from English to Italian (Italiano) copyright © 2025 by Ferdinando Albeggiani, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
Contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net
Based on:
- a text in English by William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616), appears in Sonnets, no. 65
This text was added to the website: 2025-07-17
Line count: 14
Word count: 133