'Pape Satàn, Pape Satàn, aleppe!'
burst out Plutus in his raucous voice.
And the courteous, all-discerning sage,
to comfort me, said: 'Do not be overcome
by fear. However powerful he may be,
he'll not prevent our climbing down this cliff.'

EXCERPT OF THE COMEDY: Inf. 7, 1-6

01 i12 Ude M PQ4315 C332 p 22 23

Pluto, monstrous guardian of the fourth circle, addresses Dante and Virgil. - The Vision or Hell, Purgatory and Paradise of Dante Alighieri, London, New York, Oxford University Press, 1910, p. 23-24. Université de Montréal, Bibliothèque des livres rares et collections spéciales, Collection de l’Institut d’études médiévales, PQ 4315 C332.

Pluto’s monstrous roars greet Dante and Virgil as they enter the fourth circle of Hell, where the souls of the avaricious and the prodigal are split into two opposing groups. They trudge around in a circle pushing heavy boulders with their chests in a Sisyphean manner. When the groups run into each other, they hurl insults and recall their respective sins. Dante notices many clerics and priests within the circle.

01 i11 Mc Gill elf PQ4329 S71893 dessin

Dante and Virgil observe the avaricious and the prodigal. - Jan van der Straet, Dante, Illustrazioni alla Divina Commedia, Florence, Fratelli Alinari, 1893. McGill Rare Books and Special Collections, elf PQ4329 S7 1893.

Fifth Circle
Cross the Styx