Art, Symbol & Imagination
Virgil Parleys before the City of Dis
Virgil approaches the crowded gateway of a dark city while Dante waits near the ferryman and boat, separated from his guide by the open foreground. The demons at Dis permit Virgil to come forward alone and refuse the living traveller entry. Doré places the waiting Dante beside the boat, using the space between him and the gateway to make his dependence on the guide visible. The crowded wall and looming buildings are a sharp change from the earlier open landscapes. The caption stresses that Dante cannot hear the terms offered. The uncertainty of the negotiation is therefore part of the composition, not simply a missing detail of the story.
Read the source pageLoading your collection…
Citation
Gustave Doré (design). "Virgil Parleys before the City of Dis" [editorial title]. In Dante's Inferno, Dante Alighieri. New Edition, undated supplied scan, undated edition, Thompson & Thomas. Source scan leaf 74. Lumitheca. /gallery/image/inferno-dore-67
Source details
Editorial title and description. Source details from the Library catalogue.
Full original plate and caption visually inspected. Editorial title; original scan tone and intrinsic damage retained. Sideways plates rotated in the Gallery derivative only.
Sources
From the book
Dante's InfernoDante AlighieriUndated editionMore from this book
All 76 illustrations
Related illustrations
Explore in the Codex
Entries that reference this illustration.
Cite this illustration
Gustave Doré (design). Virgil Parleys before the City of Dis. Dante's Inferno. Scan leaf 74. Lumitheca. https://lumitheca.com/gallery/image/inferno-dore-67