Places
Places of the Divine Comedy
Explore the real and symbolic places Dante crosses on his journey.
| Luogo | Tipologia | Menzioni | Versi collegati | Descrizione |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abydos | Real | 1 | 1 | Abydos is the city situated on the Asian shore of the Hellespont strait, opposite Sestos in Thrace, cited by Dante as one extreme of the brief stretch of sea that the swimmer Leander attempted to cross to reach his beloved Hero. |
| Acone | Real | 1 | 1 | Locality in the Val di Sieve, mentioned in Par. XVI 65 as an ecclesiastical district (pieve) where the Cerchi resided before moving into Florence. |
| Acquacheta | Real | 1 | 1 | The Acquacheta is a watercourse cited by Dante in Inferno XVI as a term of comparison for the roar of the waterfall of Phlegethon that descends into the eighth circle. |
| Acquasparta | Real | 1 | 1 | Acquasparta is the place of origin of the Franciscan friar Matteo d'Acquasparta, mentioned alongside Ubertino da Casale as a representative of the extremism opposite to that of the Spirituals. |
| Acre | Real | 1 | 1 | Acri is mentioned by Dante in the Inferno (XXVII 89) as a paradigm of an arduous and never accomplished military enterprise. |
| Adige | Real | 1 | 1 | The Adige is the river of northeastern Italy mentioned by Dante in Paradise as a natural boundary together with the Tagliamento. |
| Aguglione | Real | 1 | 1 | Aguglione is a village in the Florentine countryside recalled by Cacciaguida as the southern limit of ancient Florence, alongside Signa. |
| Anagni | Real | 1 | 1 | Anagni is the pontifical city where Boniface VIII was captured in September 1303, an event recalled by Dante in the Purgatorio as an outrage against the vicar of Christ. |
| Antandrus | Real | 1 | 1 | Antandrus is recalled in Paradiso as a maritime city of Phrygia, the port from which Aeneas's ships set sail on the eagle's flight toward Rome. |
| Apennines | Real | 2 | 2 | The Apennines are the principal mountain system of the Italian peninsula, mentioned by Dante as a geographical reference in Inferno XVI and Purgatorio V, within the framework of the Tuscan-Emilian landscape. |
| Crown of Aragon | Real | 1 | 1 | Aragon is mentioned by Dante in Purgatorio III, v. 116, alongside Sicily as places of honor. |
| Arezzo | Real | 1 | 1 | Arezzo is mentioned by Dante in Inferno XXIX, v. 109 as the city of origin of the forger Griffolino d'Arezzo, who introduces himself by saying: «Io fui d'Arezzo». |
| Arno | Real | 7 | 8 | River in Tuscany cited by Dante: in Inferno XXXIII it is invoked to form a barrier at its mouth; in Purgatory XIV a soul uses its name to indicate a Tuscan river. |
| Athens | Real | 3 | 3 | Greek city recalled by Dante in the Purgatorio and the Paradiso as the ancient seat of legislators and of mythical love stories. |
| Aulis | Real | 1 | 1 | Aulide is the Greek port from which, according to tradition, the fleet bound for Troy set sail. Dante recalls it by mentioning the cutting of the first cable of the Achaean expedition. |
| Ausonia | Real | 1 | 1 | Ausonia is, in the verse of Paradiso VIII 61, the ancient name of Italy, whose southern horn – corresponding to the Kingdom of Naples – was the portion allotted to Charles Martel. |
| Babylon | Real | 1 | 1 | Babylon is recalled in the Earthly Paradise as a proverbial place of corruption, where gold was preferred to faith. |
| Bagnacavallo | Real | 1 | 1 | A village and castle between Lugo and Ravenna, a fief of the Malvicini counts. Dante recalls it in the Purgatorio for its choice not to produce further heirs. |
| Bari | Real | 1 | 1 | Bari is mentioned in verse Paradiso VIII, 62 among the castles that adorn the horn of Ausonia, the southern part of the Italian peninsula corresponding to the Kingdom of Naples. |
| Benevento | Real | 1 | 1 | City near which is the bridge where, according to Manfred, his bones would still be buried under a heap of stones; it is the place of his defeat and death at the hands of Charles of Anjou. |
| Bismantova | Real | 1 | 1 | Rock of the Apennines in the Reggio area cited by Dante in the Purgatorio as an example of a steep and difficult-to-climb mountain. |
| Brenta | Real | 2 | 2 | The Brenta is mentioned by Dante in Paradiso as one of the two rivers that, together with the Piave, delimit the Marca Trevigiana, the homeland of Cunizza. |
| Brindisi | Real | 1 | 1 | Brindisi, ancient Brundisium, is recalled by Dante as the place where Virgil died in 19 BC and from which the poet's body was later taken to Naples. |
| Bruges | Real | 1 | 2 | Bruges (Italian: Bruggia) is one of the principal commercial cities of Flanders, mentioned by Dante in Inferno XV 4 as the western extreme, alongside Wissant (Italian: Guizzante), to indicate the entire Flemish territory. |