On a Painting of Cynaegirus Poem by Paul the Silentiary

The hands that dealt death to the Medes
Were hewn off by axes as they rested
On the curved stern of the ship
Which was hastening away,
Then, Cynaegirus,
When that flying vessel was held
By thy hand
As if by a cable.
But even so,
Gripping tight the ship's timber,
They accompanied the Persians,
A lifeless terror to them.
Some barbarian took the hands,
But their victory remained
With the inhabitants of Mopsopia.

translated by William Roger Paton