Secondary sourcePainting

The Plague of Florence in 1348 (Sabatelli Etching)

Luigi Sabatelli

Another impression of Luigi Sabatelli's etching illustrating the Black Death's toll on Florence as described by Boccaccio.

This etching depicts the devastation of the Black Death in Florence as recorded by Boccaccio.

Ask The Black Death about this source View the original

Etching titled 'La Peste di Firenze, Dal Boccaccio Descritta' showing plague victims, many nude and lying dead or dying in the foreground, a monk holding a cross and a friar in a hooded robe, a city gate with an arch, and gravediggers at work in the background, with a tower of Florence in the distance. — Luigi Sabatelli, The Plague of Florence in 1348, after Boccaccio's Decameron.

About this source

What it is

This etching by Luigi Sabatelli illustrates the plague described by Giovanni Boccaccio in his Decameron. It depicts dead and dying victims in the foreground, monks and friars, a city gate, and gravediggers, with a tower of Florence visible in the distance.

Why it matters

Though created long after the Black Death struck Florence in 1348, this etching reflects how Boccaccio's vivid written testimony continued to shape visual memory of the pandemic for centuries. It shows the lasting cultural impact of the plague on art and literature.

Look closer

How does the artist use composition—figures in the foreground versus background—to tell the story of the plague?
Why do you think this scene, based on Boccaccio's writing, was chosen as subject matter for an artist centuries later?
What emotions does the image seem designed to evoke, and how?

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