Karel Jaromír Erben

“ Although his fame as a scientist and an historian is firmly engraved in the Czech historical literature side by side with his two great contemporaries, Palacký and Tomek, and although he has never been outdone as an untiring and most successful folklorist: it is his single volume of poetry “Kytice z pověstí narodních” (A Bouquet of National Legends) that made his name truly immortal and most beloved to the heart of every Czech. ”

“ Her lover outside pounds with slap.
“Arise, you dead one, from your stretch
And open on the door that latch!”
The dead one opens his dim eyes,
He rubs them once, he rubs them twice,
He raises his head from the ground
And stares in semi-circle ’round. ”

“ By common consent of the people in general as well as of the literary critics the little volume is considered a jewel of so many pearls in the Czech poetry.
The above translation presents to the readers of the Review one of the most popular poems of the book as an illustration of Erben’s muse. The Czech title of the poem is Svatební Košile (Wedding Shirts) .
This work is a translation and has a separate copyright status to the applicable copyright protections of the original content. ”