[3] ΕΙΣ ΤΟ ΤΟΥ ΕΡΩΤΟΣ ΑΓΑΛΜΑ. Καὶ ἑτέρας ἱερᾶς τέχνης οἱ λόγοι προφητεῦσαι βούλονται· οὐ γάρ μοι θεμιτὸν μὴ καλεῖν ἱερὰ τὰ τέχνης γεννήματα. Ἔρως ἦν, Πραξιτέλους τέχνημα, ὁ Ἔρως αὐτός, παῖς ἀνθηρὸς καὶ νέος πτέρυγας ἔχων καὶ τόξα. χαλκὸς δὲ αὐτὸν ἐτύπου, καὶ ὡς ἂν Ἔρωτα τυπῶν τύραννον θεὸν καὶ μέγαν καὶ αὐτὸς ἐδυναστεύετο· οὐ γὰρ ἠνείχετο χαλκὸς εἶναι τὰ πάντα, ἀλλ´ ὅσος ἦν, Ἔρως ἐγίνετο. εἶδες ἂν τὸν χαλκὸν θρυπτόμενον καὶ εἰς εὐσαρκίαν ἀμηχάνως χλιδῶντα καὶ ὡς βραχέως εἰπεῖν τὰ ἀναγκαῖα πληροῦν ἑαυτῇ τὴν ὕλην ἀρκοῦσαν. ὑγρὸς μὲν ἦν ἀμοιρῶν μαλακότητος, χαλκῷ δὲ ἔχων συνῳδὸν τὴν χρόαν εὐανθὴς ἑωρᾶτο, τῶν δὲ κινήσεως ἔργων ἐστερημένος ἕτοιμος ἦν δεῖξαι κίνησιν· εἰς μὲν γὰρ ἕδραν στάσιμον ἵδρυτο, ἠπάτα δὲ ὡς καὶ τῆς μετεώρου κυριεύων φορᾶς. ἐγαυροῦτο δὲ εἰς γέλωτα, ἔμπυρόν τι καὶ μείλιχον ἐξ ὀμμάτων διαυγάζων, καὶ ἦν ἰδεῖν ὑπακούοντα τῷ πάθει τὸν χαλκὸν καὶ δεχόμενον εὐκόλως τὴν γέλωτος μίμησιν. ἵδρυτο δὲ εἰς μὲν τὴν κορυφὴν τὸν δεξιὸν ἐπικάμπτων καρπόν, τῇ δὲ ἑτέρᾳ μετεωρίζων τὸ τόξον καὶ τὴν τῆς βάσεως ἰσορροπίαν ἐπικλίνων ἐπὶ τὰ λαιά, τὴν γὰρ τῆς ἀριστερᾶς λαγόνος ἔκστασιν ἀνίστη πρὸς τὴν εὐμαρότητα τοῦ χαλκοῦ τὸ στεγανὸν ἐκκλάσας. πλόκαμοι δὲ αὐτοῦ τὴν κεφαλὴν ἐσκίαζον ἀνθηροὶ καὶ ἔνουλοι νεοτήσιον ὑπολάμποντες ἄνθος. καὶ ἦν θαυμαστὸς οἷος ὁ χαλκός· ἰδόντι μὲν γὰρ ἔρευθος ἀπέστιλβεν ἐξ ἄκρων βοστρύχων αἰρόμενον, ἁψαμένῳ δὲ ἡ θρὶξ ὑπεξανίστατο μαλθακιζομένη πρὸς τὴν αἴσθησιν. ἐμοὶ μὲν δὴ θεασαμένῳ τὴν τέχνην ἐπῄει πιστεύειν, ὅτι καὶ χορὸν ἤσκησε κινούμενον Δαίδαλος καὶ χρυσῷ παρεῖχεν αἰσθήσεις, ὅπου καὶ Πραξιτέλης εἰς τὴν εἰκόνα τοῦ Ἔρωτος ἐνέθηκε μικροῦ καὶ νοήματα καὶ πτέρυγι τὸν ἀέρα τέμνειν ἐμηχανήσατο.

[3] ON THE STATUE OF EROS. My discourse desires to interpret another sacred work of art; for it is not right for me to refuse to eall the productions of art sacred. The Eros, the workmanship of Praxiteles, was Eros himself, a boy in the bloom of youth with wings and bow. Bronze gave expression to him, and as though giving expression to Eros as a great and dominating god, it was itself subdued by Eros ; for it could not endure to be just bronze, but it became Eros with all his greatness. You might have seen the bronze losing its hardness and becoming marvellously delicate in the direction of plumpness and, to put the matter briefly, the material proving equal to fulfilling all the obligations that were laid upon it. It was supple but without effeminacy ; and while it had the proper colour of bronze, it looked bright and fresh ; and though it was quite devoid of actual motion, it was ready to display motion ; for though it was fixed solidly on a pedestal, it deceived one into thinking that it possessed the power to fly. It was filled with joy even to laughter, the glance from the eyes was ardent and gentle, and one could see the bronze coming under the sway of passion and willingly receiving the representation of laughter. It stood with right hand bent toward the head and lifting the bow with its left; and the even balance of the body's posture was modified by an inclination ' toward the left, for the projecting left hip was raised so as to break the stiffness of the bronze and produce an easy pose. The head was shaded by locks that were bright and curly and shining with the brightness of youth. And what wonderful bronze it was ! for as one looked a ruddy colour shone out from the ends of the curls, and when one felt the hair it yielded as though soft to the touch. As I gazed on this work of art, the belief came over me that Daedalus had indeed wrought a dancing group in motion and had bestowed sensation upon gold, while Praxiteles had all but put intelligence into his image of Eros and had so contrived that it should cleave the air with its wings.