Vic77

As you have mentioned, a polymath is a person of great, varied learning. The trick to the question is understanding its structure. Here, the colon explains why "the consummate polymath is over." In other words, the colon is synonymous with "because." Let's recast the question with this change. The days of the consummate ___polymaths__ are over, because there are simply too many fields of knowledge for one person to master completely.