L ' I N F E R N O

DANTE versifies:
INF C14 94-96 / DANTE INF C14 94-96 / KLINE
«In mezzo mar siede un paese guasto», He then said: There is a deserted island
diss' elli allora, «che s'appella Creta, in the middle of the sea, named Crete,
sotto 'l cui rege fu già 'l mondo casto. under whose king Saturn, the world was pure.
120
VIRGIL:
INF C14 97-99 / DANTE INF C14 97-99 / KLINE
Una montagna v'è che già fu lieta There is a mountain, there, called Ida, which was
d'acqua e di fronde, che si chiamò Ida; once gladdened with waters and vegetation,
or è diserta come cosa vieta. and now is abandoned like an ancient spoil heap.
INF C14 100-102 / DANTE
Rëa la scelse già per cuna fida Rhea chose it, once, as the trusted cradle of her
del suo figliuolo, e per celarlo meglio, son, and the better to hide him when he wept,
uando piangea, vi facea far le grida. caused loud shouts to echo from it.
RHEA: HID HER SON, JUPITER, IN A CAVE TO PREVENT HIM BEING EATEN BY HIS FATHER, CRONUS.
INF C14 103-105 / DANTE
Dentro dal monte sta dritto un gran veglio, Inside the mountain, a great Old Man, stands erect,
che tien volte le spalle inver' Dammiata with his shoulders turned towards Egyptian
e Roma guarda come süo speglio. Damietta, and looks at Rome as if it were his
mirror.
OLD MAN: AN ALLEGORY OF HUMAN HISTORY BASED ON DANIEL 2 32. THE FOUR METALS ARE THE FOUR AGES OF MAN:
GOLD, SILVER, BRONZE & IRON (SEE ALSO OVID’S METAMORPHOSES 1). THE IRON & CLAY FEET, ARE SECULAR & SPIRITUAL
AUTHORITY, THE LATTER FOOT BEING THE ONE HUMANITY LOOKS TO FOR SUPPORT, BUT WEAKENED & CORRUPTED BY
TEMPORAL POWER. CRETE IN AENEID 3 104-5 IS THE ‘CRADLE OF OUR (ROMAN) RACE’ TRACED BACK VIA TROY TO TEUCER.
DAMIETTA STANDS FOR EGYPT, SUPERSEDED BY ROME. THE GOLDEN AGE ALONE WAS FREE OF TEARS.
INF C14 106-108 / DANTE
La sua testa è di fin oro formata, His head is formed of pure gold, his arms
e puro argento son le braccia e 'l petto, and his breasts are refined silver:
poi è di rame infino a la forcata; then he is bronze as far as the thighs.
INF C14 109-111 / DANTE
da indi in giuso è tutto ferro eletto, Downwards from there he is all of choice iron,
salvo che 'l destro piede è terra cotta; except that the right foot is baked clay, and more
e sta 'n su quel, più che 'n su l'altro, eretto. more of his weight is on that one than the other.
INF C14 112-114 / DANTE
Ciascuna parte, fuor che l'oro, è rotta Every part, except the gold, is cleft
d'una fessura che lagrime goccia, with a fissure that sheds tears,
le quali, accolte, fóran quella grotta. which collect and pierce the grotto.
INF C14 115-117 / DANTE
Lor corso in questa valle si diroccia; Their course falls from rock to rock
fanno Acheronte, Stige e Flegetonta; into this valley. They form
poi sen van giù per questa stretta doccia, Acheron, Styx and Phlegethon,
INF C14 118-120 / DANTE
infin, là ove più non si dismonta, where there is no further fall, and form Cocytus:
fanno Cocito; e qual sia quello stagno you will see what kind of lake that is:
tu lo vedrai, però qui non si conta». so I will not describe it to you here.
DANTE versifies:
INF C14 118-120 / DANTE INF C14 118-120 / KLINE
infin, là ove più non si dismonta, where there is no further fall, and form Cocytus:
fanno Cocito; e qual sia quello stagno you will see what kind of lake that is:
tu lo vedrai, però qui non si conta». so I will not describe it to you here.
DANTE:
INF C14 121-123 / DANTE INF C14 121-123 / KLINE
E io a lui: «Se 'l presente rigagno I said to him: If the present stream flows down
si diriva così dal nostro mondo, like that from our world,
perché ci appar pur a questo vivagno?» why does it only appear to us on this bank?