Art, Symbol & Imagination
The Lion Confronts Dante
A lion occupies a rocky passage beneath a small opening of pale sky, its head raised toward the traveller's route. The second beast appears in the opening canto as Dante attempts to leave the dark wood. Here the narrowing rock walls give the lion a commanding position across the ascent. Fine pale lines pick out its mane and the stones, while the deeper shadows reduce the surrounding space. The printed caption describes a raised head and hunger. The image records a particular moment in the poem's sequence; it is not an independent zoological scene or a general emblem of lions.
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Citation
Gustave Doré (design). "The Lion Confronts Dante" [editorial title]. In Dante's Inferno, Dante Alighieri. New Edition, undated supplied scan, undated edition, Thompson & Thomas. Source scan leaf 21. Lumitheca. /gallery/image/inferno-dore-14
Source details
Editorial title and description. Source details from the Library catalogue.
Full source plate visually inspected; original scan tone retained. Editorial title. Sideways bound plates turned upright in the derivative only; source and reader unchanged.
Sources
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Dante's InfernoDante AlighieriUndated editionMore from this book
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Cite this illustration
Gustave Doré (design). The Lion Confronts Dante. Dante's Inferno. Scan leaf 21. Lumitheca. https://lumitheca.com/gallery/image/inferno-dore-14