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Primary sourceBookc. 1306–1310

Inferno

Dante Alighieri · c. 1306–1310

The first part of Dante's Divine Comedy, describing his journey through the nine circles of Hell guided by Virgil.

Inferno is Dante's own composition, showing his personal moral and political vision through the fate of real and imagined souls.

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Illuminated manuscript page of the Inferno, with red and blue initials, columns of Italian text, a crane drawn in the left margin, and roundel portraits of classical and biblical figures along the borders. A seated figure writes in a gold-framed initial.
Illuminated manuscript of Dante's Inferno, 14th century.

About this source

What it is

Inferno is the first of the three sections of Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy, likely composed in the early 14th century during Dante's exile from Florence. It describes a fictionalized Dante traveling through nine circles of Hell with the Roman poet Virgil as his guide.

Why it matters

Inferno is the most widely read part of the Comedy. In it Dante places historical and contemporary figures, including political rivals and churchmen, into specific torments, revealing his moral judgments and the bitter politics of his time following his exile from Florence.

Look closer

  • What does Dante's choice of who belongs in Hell tell us about his own beliefs and grudges?
  • Why might Dante have chosen a Roman poet, Virgil, as his guide rather than a Christian figure?
  • What does the manuscript's decoration suggest about how valued this text was?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Dante Alighieri on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Painting of Dante in a red robe and laurel wreath, holding a book, gesturing toward Hell, Purgatory mountain, and Florence. Nude figures writhe in a lower-left inferno; an inscription runs along the bottom.Book

Secondary source

The Divine Comedy

Dante Alighieri · 1320

An open manuscript volume displayed in a case against a red background. Pages are handwritten in dark brown ink in columns, with red headings on the right page. The leather-bound book lies flat with its pages spread wide.Book

Primary source

Vita Nuova

Dante Alighieri · before 1294

Title page of a 1577 Paris edition of Dante Alighieri's De vulgari eloquentia, printed by Io. Corbon. Black Latin text on aged cream paper, with an oval library stamp on the lower right and a red and marbled book binding visible at the edges.Book

Primary source

De vulgari eloquentia

Dante Alighieri · c. 1302–1305

Open manuscript volume on a dark display surface showing handwritten Latin text in brown ink on aged paper. The left page is blank, and the right page has a title and dense italic script with marginal notes.Book

Primary source

De Monarchia

Dante Alighieri · c. 1312–1313

An open illuminated manuscript on red fabric. The right page has a painted border with gold and colored foliage, three small scenes at top showing figures in a boat and on a shore, a decorated initial with a seated figure, and columns of black-letter text in red and black. The left page is blank parchment with faded text visible at its top edge.Book

Primary source

Purgatorio

Dante Alighieri · early 14th century

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