“But Greece and her foundations are
Built below the tide of war,
Based on the crystalline sea
Of thought and its eternity;
Her citizens, imperial spirits,
Rule the present from the past,
On all this world of men inherits
Their seal is set.”

—  Percy Bysshe Shelley , Hellas

Source: Hellas (1821), l. 696-703

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Percy Bysshe Shelley photo
Percy Bysshe Shelley 246
English Romantic poet 1792–1822

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