Rubaconte

Description

In the twelfth canto of the Purgatorio, at verse 102, Dante compares the staircase carved into the wall of purgatory to the one that in Florence climbed up toward the church of San Miniato al Monte. According to the interpretation of the notes to the canto, the church dominates, that is, overlooks, the bridge of Rubaconte. The bridge takes its name from the podestà Rubaconte di Mandella, who in 1237 began its construction. Today the structure is known as Ponte alle Grazie, but in Dante's time it was still designated by the original name linked to the podestà who had it built. The comparison with the staircase of purgatory fits into Dante's customary practice of anchoring the images of the afterlife to precise, familiar earthly places.