Art, Symbol & Imagination
Dante Confronts Bocca in the Ice
One traveller bends toward a head in the ice while his companion stands upright and further heads recede behind them. Dante demands the reluctant inhabitant’s name and takes hold of his hair; another voice subsequently identifies him as Bocca. Doré gives the encounter a low, crowded foreground, with the upright guide marking its boundary. The scene complicates the traveller’s position as observer because he uses physical force to obtain an answer. The Gallery describes that narrative action without endorsing the accusation made against the historical Bocca. Marginal writing and the separate caption are excluded from the artwork derivative.
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Citation
Gustave Doré (design). "Dante Confronts Bocca in the Ice" [editorial title]. In Dante's Inferno, Dante Alighieri. New Edition, undated supplied scan, undated edition, Thompson & Thomas. Source scan leaf 222. Lumitheca. /gallery/image/inferno-dore-215
Source details
Editorial title and description. Source details from the Library catalogue.
Full original plate and caption individually inspected; neighbouring canto read. Editorial title. Source tone and intrinsic damage retained; rotation applies only to Gallery derivatives.
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Gustave Doré (design). Dante Confronts Bocca in the Ice. Dante's Inferno. Scan leaf 222. Lumitheca. https://lumitheca.com/gallery/image/inferno-dore-215