Buoso

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Buoso appears in Canto XXV of the Inferno, placed among the damned of the seventh bolgia (eighth ditch) of the thieves, where the serpents and the damned exchange form. According to the introduction to the canto, the name Buoso is one of the three just uttered in the scene, while the illustrious surname (Donati or Abati, according to the hypotheses of the ancient commentators) is not declared by Dante. The note on verse 140 reports that, according to the identifications of the ancient commentators, Buoso would be a member of the Florentine Donati family – presumably a Buoso Donati, of the same age as the other four named in the scene, a signatory of the peace of Cardinal Latino in 1280 – and uncle of Corso, Piccarda, and Forese Donati. The same note indicates that the Anonimo says he ceded his public office to Francesco Cavalcanti, the snake-man with whom he here exchanges nature. A branch of the family is also recalled in another scene, where a Buoso Donati "counterfeited" by Gianni Schicchi is remembered.