Catullus, Caius Valerius: (Lugete, o Veneres Cupidinesque...)

Lugete, o Veneres Cupidinesque,  
et quantum est hominum venustiorum: 
passer mortuus est meae puellae  
passer, deliciae meae puellae,   
quem plus illa oculis suis amabat.  
nam mellitus erat suamque norat  
ipsam tam bene quam puella matrem,  
nec sese a gremio illius movebat,  
sed circumsiliens modo huc modo illuc 
ad solam dominam usque pipiabat.  
qui nunc it per iter tenebricosum  
illuc, unde negant redire quemquam.  
at vobis male sit, malae tenebrae  
Orci, quae omnia bella devoratis:  
tam bellum mihi passerem abstulistis. 
o factum male! o miselle passer!  
tua nunc opera meae puellae   
flendo turgiduli rubent ocelli.

Mourn, all you Venuses and Cupids,
And all the company of lovelier people:
the sparrow of my girlfriend has died,
the sparrow, the pet of my girlfriend,
whom she loved more than her own little eyes.
For he was sugary-sweet and he knew his own
mistress as well as a girl her mother,
he did not move himself from her lap,
but hopping around - now this way, now that -
he used to chirp for his mistress alone.
Now he goes along that pitch-black road
in that direction, from where they deny that anyone returns.
However to you may it go badly, wretched shades of Orcus,
who devours everything pretty:
you took away from me so pretty a sparrow.
(What a wretched deed! Poor little sparrow!);
now the swollen eyes of my girlfriend are made red
from weeping because of your deed.