Dante Meditating on the "Divine Comedy"

Französische Grafik 1830–1844, 1843

This is a painting featuring ghostly figures and mythical creatures surrounding a central man. The man is dressed in a red robe with a red cap on his head, and he is seated on a stone slab, a lamp sitting on a surface next to him. He has peach skin, and his face is partially in shadow. Surrounding him are countless intertwined humans, animals, and creatures in shades of white and gray. Many of the people are so tightly intertwined that their limbs and bodies are only partially visible. Above the man, a creature with the head and torso of a human but the legs of a horse and the wings of a bat rears up. In the upper left-hand corner, several people in long dresses reach up towards a white star-like shape that casts light on them. Two men and a woman on the left stand next to the central man, looking down at him. At the bottom of the painting is a snake, its mouth open to expose its fangs.
Artist
Französische Grafik 1830–1844
Date
1843
Type
Drawing
Medium
pen and brown ink with brown wash and watercolor over graphite, heightened with white gouache, on 3 joined sheets of laid paper
Dimensions
42.3 × 36.1 cm
Collection
National Gallery of Art, Washington
Licence
Public domain, CC0

Image description

This is a painting featuring ghostly figures and mythical creatures surrounding a central man. The man is dressed in a red robe with a red cap on his head, and he is seated on a stone slab, a lamp sitting on a surface next to him. He has peach skin, and his face is partially in shadow. Surrounding him are countless intertwined humans, animals, and creatures in shades of white and gray. Many of the people are so tightly intertwined that their limbs and bodies are only partially visible. Above the man, a creature with the head and torso of a human but the legs of a horse and the wings of a bat rears up. In the upper left-hand corner, several people in long dresses reach up towards a white star-like shape that casts light on them. Two men and a woman on the left stand next to the central man, looking down at him. At the bottom of the painting is a snake, its mouth open to expose its fangs.

Französische Grafik 1830–1844