Sophist Leaving Syria

Eminent sophist, now that you're leaving Syria
with plans to write a book about Antioch,
it's worth your mentioning Mebis in your work-
the famous Mebis, unquestionably
the best looking, the most adored young man
in all Antioch. No one of the others
living his kind of life, no one of them gets paid
what he gets paid. To have Mebis
just for two or three days, they often give
as much as a hundred staters. I said in Antioch;
but in Alexandria as well, in fact in Rome even,
you can't find a young man as attractive as Mebis.

Constantine P. Cavafy

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