Botticelli

Abstract

This paper investigates Sandro Botticelli’s Chart of Hell by drawing on select canti and scenes from Dante Alighieri’s Inferno. The chosen episodes of Hell are examined to determine how Botticelli chose to represent them visually. Throughout this analysis, Botticelli’s knowledge and familiarity of The Divine Comedy and especially Inferno is made clear as he depicts key exchanges and characters whenever possible. Although it is a map, the image created is far from flat and static. This paper argues that Botticelli was able to create movement and narrative in his map. With the continued appearances of Dante the pilgrim and his guide Virgil, viewers are able to keep track of and follow these figures throughout their journey in Hell. Sandro Botticelli’s chart can therefore be interpreted in varying ways: chronologically (following their descent further into Hell, as is narrated in the poem) or all at once (as a visual overview of their journey).