Illustration for Canto II
Medium
etching and engraving on wove paper
Dimensions
design size: 10.8 x 7.2 cm (4 1/4 x 2 13/16 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of William B. O'Neal
Accession Number
1983.103.2.e
Art Historical Context
This delicate etching and engraving, titledIllustration for Canto II*, a pivotal moment from Dante Alighieri's *Infer*, the first part of his epic *Divine Comedy*. Created in 1788 by engraver Charles Heath after a design by Thomas Stothard, it depicts the poet's encounter with Virgil in the shadowy underworld, evoking the terror and awe of Dante's journey. Stothard, a leading British artist of the Romantic era known for his lyrical illustrations of poetry and literature, infused the scene with dramatic tension and ethereal light, perfectly suited to the medieval text's revival during the late ...