We have mentioned the marvelous physical appearance of the Dante Urbinate but here we will focus on one aspect of its physical make-up: the parchment.   The parchment of the Dante Urbinate is likely made of young goatskin of high quality, which would be expected of a luxury model codex. It has no visible seams…

As we go deeper into Dante’s Inferno, we are now at the eighth bolgia in the eighth circle of Hell, where those who gave false or corrupt advice are punished.   As Dante and Virgil cross a rocky bridge, Virgil leans over to speak with the double flames of the souls of Ulysses and Diomedes, who are portrayed at the center. Here, the two Greek heroes, condemned for the same sin, take their punishment together.   The fire that engulfs the souls of fraudulent counsellors burns below the bridge. In the background, the landscape opens toward the horizon showing gentle hills and a broad portion of the sky at sunset.   Source: Ambrogio M. Piazzoni, Una nuova lettura della Commedia, La…

The Dante Urbinate is an extraordinary manuscript, by any measure. Our journey through its pages is a perfect way to analyze the illustrations and the iconography in the manuscript, bringing light to some of the…

Our journey through the Dante Urbinate picks up at the fifth circle of Hell, where souls are punished for the sins of wrath and sullenness. In this splendid miniature, we see Dante and Virgil while…

Often, when we turn our attention to miniatures, we risk forgetting the great contribution given to us by the copyists, who were first-rank artists themselves. Today we will meet Matteo de’ Contugi, one of the…

There are many characters, either based on real people or taken from literary tradition, that have gained fame thanks to being in Dante’s Divine Comedy. Among all of them, the story of Paolo and Francesca…

When and where did the splendid manuscript of the Dante Urbinate originate? That is the subject of this episode all about the priceless Renaissance masterpiece edition of Dante. Once commissioned by Federico da Montefeltro, work…

Our journey alongside Dante continues at the gate to the second circle of the Inferno. Having passed through Limbo, Dante and Virgil reach the actual entry to Hell, where the naked devils that greet them…

Returning to our voyage through the pages of the Dante Urbinate, today we will meet its patron, Federico da Montefeltro, a man of highly refined taste who played a key role in the Italian Renaissance.…

After exploring the history of the manuscript of the Dante Urbinate, today we finally begin our journey into the Divine Comedy itself, and the best place to start is in the “dark wood” that opens…