An honest Tear — Stonehenge

An honest Tear ¹
Is durabler than Bronze－
This Cenotaph
May each that dies－

Reared by itself－⁵
No Deputy suffice－
Gratitude bears
When Obelisk decays

(F.1232/J.1192)

[1] Tear:: the act of tearing. honest:: without trick, unsophisticated. honest Tear:: the way of cutting stone in the Bronze Age.
[2] Bronze:: Bronze Age, 3000–600 BC. in Europe.
[3] Cenotaph:: an empty monument to honor the dead buried elsewhere.
[5] Reared by itself:: a hint on the stones raised in Stonehenge.
[8] Obelisk:: alluding to each stone raised.

It is evident, that Stonehenge was at one time a spot of great sanctity . . . within a radius of three miles, there are about three hundred burial mounds. . . . Under these circumstances, we may surely refer Stonehenge to the Bronze age. ─ Pre-historic Times (1865)