Ceres, you who first taught the young world Tu che mostrasti al rozzo mondo prima
Ceres, you who first taught the young world
how to transform the land with useful work
hard acorns become soft corn, a peopled earth
feasts and worships you everywhere:

Bacchus, every song hymns your courage
who first taught the ancient peoples how to
plant grapes on open sloping hills to take
from the land such rich revered liquors,

If you will both look down at our humble region,
at all you have, until now, given us,
with eyes of pity and simple longing.

April has flowered; our altars honor you:
with our lifeblood, with milk, and with wine;
you see me standing before you humbly.

Tu che mostrasti al rozzo mondo prima
mutar le dure ghiande in belle spiche,
e festi sė con l'utili fatiche
che dea ti chiama ogni abitato clima:

e tu, del cui valor canta ogni rima,
primo a insegnare a quelle genti antiche
piantar le viti ne le piagge apriche
per trarne poi liquor di tanta stima:

se con occhi pietosi e mente umile
guarderete ambiduo quel che finora,
vostra dolce mercč, dato n'avete,

di sangue e latte al pių fiorito aprile,
con vino e farro i vostri altari ognora
da ma onorar con puro cor vedrete.

Sources:

Rizzardi 23:24; Chiapetti 20:26; 1995 Bullock 39:99-100. For Key see A Note on the Italian texts

Comments:

Gambara invokes Bacchus and Ceres for crops (corn) and wine (grapes). The rhyme scheme is the same as in "Vero albergo d'Amor, occhi lucenti" ("Radiant eyes, a true haven for Love"). See 1995 Bullock pp. 99-100 for variants, commentary, and paraphrase. For earlier commentary see Courten p. 129; (on dating either 1526 or 1538); Finzi p. 42 n.44; Jerrold p. 166.
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