Great Zimbabwe Poem by Peter Hill

In ages past, romantic legend claims,

A woman ruled and reigned among these grey

And crafted towers; goddess fair and fey,

Immortal She was Queen and these remains

Of Great Zimbabwe part of her domains,

Where stands her Temple still, and marks the day

When fiery Essence burned her life away

Within the Great Enclosure's grim constraints.

The chilling clouds of roiling mist dissolve

The scene from Rider Haggard's vision; damp

And cold the scattered stone, o'erthrown this camp

Of ancient strength, and quenched its heart's resolve.

And yet, the mystery lingers; secrets soak the stone.

Go now, stranger! She protects her own.