Divine Comedy of Sandro Botticelli

The Divine Comedy of Sandro Botticelli

One of the most important works in world literature originates from the period between 1307 and around 1321 in Italy. The Divine Comedy, also known by its Italian title Divina Comedia, is simultaneously the first and most famous Italian piece of literature. Dante Alighieri composed this timeless tale. The work has been adapted into countless films and musical pieces, paintings and illustrations, sculptures and architecture, and even a video game has been inspired by the Divine Comedy. Hardly any other literary work from the Middle Ages has had such an influence. The world famous painter Sandro Botticelli made a total of 92 partly coloured silverpoint drawings, which adorn this edition of the Divine Comedy and belongs among the master’s greatest artworks.

Immortal Literature

The story of the Divine Comedy is a personal vision of Dante’s as he represents Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise. It is a tale full of symbol and allegories, a philosophical fiction that is vividly told in spite of the abstract story. Dante played on man’s primal fears, brought past events to life, and slipped in contemporary theological insights. The impressive epic astounds through its figurative language, its irony, and its striking comparisons. Even if everyone does not understand this staggering fiction, the Divine Comedy has nonetheless remained one of the most important works of world literature to this day.

Botticelli’s Illumination

Botticelli was one of the significant painters of the Early Italian Renaissance. Today, his paintings hang in the most important art museums in the world. His picture cycle of the Divine Comedy originates from between 1482 and 1503 at the behest of Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de' Medici (1463–1503). These 92 illuminations are counted among his most famous works. In technical perfection, the silverpoint drawings exemplify the events, people, and fable-like creatures of the Divine Comedy. The edition of the epic with Botticelli’s illustrations was commissioned by the Renaissance Prince Alfonzo de Medici and originates from between 1480 and 1490. This inestimably valuable manuscript exists today in the Vatican Library.