{"id":81,"date":"2018-06-19T13:09:44","date_gmt":"2018-06-19T17:09:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/?page_id=81"},"modified":"2025-07-17T12:04:38","modified_gmt":"2025-07-17T16:04:38","slug":"dante-and-the-new-world","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/dante-and-the-new-world\/","title":{"rendered":"Dante and the New World"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Dante and the New World<\/h1>\n\n\n<nav style=\"font-style:normal;font-weight:600;\" class=\"is-responsive wp-block-navigation is-layout-flex wp-container-core-navigation-is-layout-db721894 wp-block-navigation-is-layout-flex\" aria-label=\"sections\" \n\t\t data-wp-interactive=\"core\/navigation\" data-wp-context='{\"overlayOpenedBy\":{\"click\":false,\"hover\":false,\"focus\":false},\"type\":\"overlay\",\"roleAttribute\":\"\",\"ariaLabel\":\"Menu\"}'><button aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-label=\"Open menu\" class=\"wp-block-navigation__responsive-container-open\" \n\t\t\t\tdata-wp-on--click=\"actions.openMenuOnClick\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-wp-on--keydown=\"actions.handleMenuKeydown\"\n\t\t\t><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\"><path d=\"M4 7.5h16v1.5H4z\"><\/path><path d=\"M4 15h16v1.5H4z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/button>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-navigation__responsive-container\"  id=\"modal-1\" \n\t\t\t\tdata-wp-class--has-modal-open=\"state.isMenuOpen\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-wp-class--is-menu-open=\"state.isMenuOpen\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-wp-watch=\"callbacks.initMenu\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-wp-on--keydown=\"actions.handleMenuKeydown\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-wp-on--focusout=\"actions.handleMenuFocusout\"\n\t\t\t\ttabindex=\"-1\"\n\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-navigation__responsive-close\" tabindex=\"-1\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-navigation__responsive-dialog\" \n\t\t\t\tdata-wp-bind--aria-modal=\"state.ariaModal\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-wp-bind--aria-label=\"state.ariaLabel\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-wp-bind--role=\"state.roleAttribute\"\n\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<button aria-label=\"Close menu\" class=\"wp-block-navigation__responsive-container-close\" \n\t\t\t\tdata-wp-on--click=\"actions.closeMenuOnClick\"\n\t\t\t><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\"><path d=\"m13.06 12 6.47-6.47-1.06-1.06L12 10.94 5.53 4.47 4.47 5.53 10.94 12l-6.47 6.47 1.06 1.06L12 13.06l6.47 6.47 1.06-1.06L13.06 12Z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/button>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-navigation__responsive-container-content\" \n\t\t\t\tdata-wp-watch=\"callbacks.focusFirstElement\"\n\t\t\t id=\"modal-1-content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul style=\"font-style:normal;font-weight:600;\" class=\"wp-block-navigation__container is-responsive wp-block-navigation\"><li class=\" wp-block-navigation-item  menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page wp-block-navigation-link\"><a class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__content\"  href=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/crafting-a-cosmos\/\" title=\"\"><span class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__label\">Crafting a Cosmos<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\" wp-block-navigation-item  menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page wp-block-navigation-link\"><a class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__content\"  href=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/mapping-hell-cartography-and-the-comedy\/\" title=\"\"><span class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__label\">Mapping Hell<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\" wp-block-navigation-item  menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page wp-block-navigation-link\"><a class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__content\"  href=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/dante-and-the-new-world\/\" title=\"\"><span class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__label\">Dante &amp; the New World<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\" wp-block-navigation-item  menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page wp-block-navigation-link\"><a class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__content\"  href=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/infernal-geometry\/\" title=\"\"><span class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__label\">Infernal Geometry<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\" wp-block-navigation-item  menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page wp-block-navigation-link\"><a class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__content\"  href=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/stars-and-moonspots-dantes-astronomy\/\" title=\"\"><span class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__label\">Stars &amp; Moonspots<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\" wp-block-navigation-item  menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page wp-block-navigation-link\"><a class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__content\"  href=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/envisioning-the-heavens-purgatory-and-paradise\/\" title=\"\"><span class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__label\">Envisioning the Heavens<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\" wp-block-navigation-item  menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page wp-block-navigation-link\"><a class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__content\"  href=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/archeology-and-mathematics-dante-in-the-19th-century\/\" title=\"\"><span class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__label\">Archeology &amp; Mathematics<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\" wp-block-navigation-item  menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page wp-block-navigation-link\"><a class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__content\"  href=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/hells-beasts-and-bodies-the-anatomy-of-hell\/\" title=\"\"><span class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__label\">Hell\u2019s Beasts &amp; Bodies<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\" wp-block-navigation-item  menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page wp-block-navigation-link\"><a class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__content\"  href=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/women-authors-of-science-and-the-comedy\/\" title=\"\"><span class=\"wp-block-navigation-item__label\">Women Authors of Science &amp; the Comedy<\/span><\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div><\/nav>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>I turned to the right and considered the other pole, and I saw four stars never seen except by the first people.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-right\"><strong>\u2014<em>Purgatorio<\/em> 1.22\u20134<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-background is-layout-grid wp-container-core-group-is-layout-1a149459 wp-block-group-is-layout-grid\" style=\"background-color:#faf3e6\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image is-resized\" style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40)\"><a href=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/dante-and-the-new-world\/d20-aeon903m\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-130\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"1244\" src=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/63\/2018\/06\/D20-AEON903m.jpg\" alt=\"Pierfrancesco Giambullari Accademico Fiorentino. Del sito, f\u00f3rma, &amp; mis\u00fare, d\u00e9llo Inf\u00e9rno di Dante [Pierfrancesco Giambullari Florentine Academic. On the Site, Form and Measurements of the Inferno of Dante] Pierfrancesco Giambullari (1495\u20131555)\" class=\"wp-image-130\" style=\"width:200px\"\/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><strong>1. <em>Pierfrancesco Giambullari Accademico Fiorentino. Del sito, f\u00f3rma, &amp; mis\u00fare, d\u00e9llo Inf\u00e9rno di Dante<\/em> [Pierfrancesco Giambullari Florentine Academic. On the Site, Form and Measurements of the Inferno of Dante]<\/strong><br>Pierfrancesco Giambullari (1495\u20131555)<br>Florence: Neri Dortelata, 1544<br>Brown University Library, Chambers Dante Collection<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image is-resized\" style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40)\"><a href=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/dante-and-the-new-world\/aeon903m\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-187\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1635\" height=\"2500\" src=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/63\/2018\/06\/AEON903m.jpg\" alt=\"Pierfrancesco Giambullari Accademico Fiorentino. Del sito, f\u00f3rma, &amp; mis\u00fare, d\u00e9llo Inf\u00e9rno di Dante [Pierfrancesco Giambullari Florentine Academic. On the Site, Form and Measurements of the Inferno of Dante]\" class=\"wp-image-187\" style=\"width:200px\"\/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><strong>2. <em>Pierfrancesco Giambullari Accademico Fiorentino. Del sito, f\u00f3rma, &amp; mis\u00fare, d\u00e9llo Inf\u00e9rno di Dante<\/em> [Pierfrancesco Giambullari Florentine Academic. On the Site, Form and Measurements of the Inferno of Dante]<\/strong><br>Pierfrancesco Giambullari (1495\u20131555)<br>Florence: Neri Dortelata, 1544<br>Brown University Library, Chambers Dante Collection<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image is-resized\" style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40)\"><a href=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/dante-and-the-new-world\/d19_aeon2246_ga-p95m\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-132\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1220\" height=\"1029\" src=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/63\/2018\/06\/D19_AEON2246_GA-P95m.jpg\" alt=\"La Geografia de Claudio Ptolemeo\" class=\"wp-image-132\" style=\"width:200px\"\/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><strong>3. <em>La Geografia de Claudio Ptolemeo<\/em><\/strong><br>Ptolemy (active second century)<br>Venice, Italy: Giovan Battista Pedrezzano, 1548<br>Brown University Library, Church Collection<br>Italian edition of Sebastian M\u00fcnster&#8217;s commentary<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image is-resized\" style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40)\"><a href=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/dante-and-the-new-world\/attachment\/01156003\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-133\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1230\" height=\"917\" src=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/63\/2018\/06\/01156003.jpg\" alt=\"Astrolabium Americus Vespuccius\" class=\"wp-image-133\" style=\"width:200px\"\/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><strong>4. <em>Astrolabium Americus Vespuccius<\/em><\/strong><br>Jan Collaert (1566\u20131628) after Giovanni Stradano (1566\u20131628)<br>Antwerp, Belgium: Philips Galle, c. 1591<br>John Carter Brown Library<br>Engraving on paper; part of Nova Reperta [New Inventions of Modern Times]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image is-resized\" style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40)\"><a href=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/dante-and-the-new-world\/d18_aeon2252_3s-g1006-t5x-1584m\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-134\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1802\" height=\"1452\" src=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/63\/2018\/06\/D18_AEON2252_3S-G1006-T5x-1584m.jpg\" alt=\"Theatrum orbis terrarum\" class=\"wp-image-134\" style=\"width:200px\"\/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><strong>5. <em>Theatrum orbis terrarum<\/em><\/strong><br>Abraham Ortelius (1527\u20131598)<br>Antwerp, Belgium: Christopher Plantin, 1584<br>Brown University Library, Lownes Science Collection<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>Other than key topographical landmarks Jerusalem and Cuma (often considered the entrance to Hell), early maps did not show Hell\u2019s precise location on the globe. Departing from tradition, Florentine academic and linguist Pierfrancesco Giambullari mapped Hell onto the sixteenth-century world in his treatise, \u201cOn the Site, Form, and Measurements of Dante\u2019s Inferno\u201d <strong>(1, 2)<\/strong>. Aerial and global views of two woodcuts situate Hell and Purgatory on opposite ends of the earth, at Jerusalem and its antipodes respectively. Giambullari cited Sebastian Munster\u2019s <em>Geography<\/em> <strong>(3)<\/strong> among his sources in determining Hell\u2019s exact position on the earth. A striking feature of the global cross section is the appearance of the Americas to the left of Hell, labeled as \u201cTerra Incognita.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Maps of Dante\u2019s poem were not merely didactic or neutral interpretations, but politically-charged visual arguments. Giambullari\u2019s cartographical interpretation of the <em>Comedy<\/em> should be viewed in light of his relationship to the Medici court. As its linguist, artistic advisor and historian, he clearly hoped to promote Medici political and cultural power. Giambullari dedicated the volume to his patron, Duke Cosimo I de\u2019 Medici, along with \u201clovers of the Florentine language.\u201d These letters reveal Giambullari\u2019s pro-Florentine attitude, which is emphasized by his use of Tuscan orthography (seen in the accented vowels) he had established under the auspices of the Florentine Academy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The political implications of Dante\u2019s cartographic authority were also showcased in a print series depicting Amerigo Vespucci\u2019s \u201cdiscovery\u201d of America <strong>(4)<\/strong>. Vespucci gazes up at the night sky and gestures toward the Southern Cross, a constellation in the Southern Hemisphere that aided Vespucci on his journey to the Americas. People at the time thought that the \u201cfour stars\u201d which Dante describes in <em>Purgatorio<\/em> were in fact this constellation. Strewn with instruments like an armillary sphere and astrolabe (the title of the print), an illuminated table displays symbols of Vespucci\u2019s knowledge. A vital part of his learning was an intimate familiarity with Dante\u2019s poetry, etched on the left in a cartouche below a medallion portrait of the poet. These verses from the first canto of <em>Purgatorio<\/em> apparently inspired Vespucci to travel to the New World. By depicting this connection, the artist centrally inscribed Dante, along with Vespucci and Christopher Columbus, in the cartographical history of Italy. This narrative promoted the role of Italians, particularly Florentines, in the conquest and colonization of the Americas. Notably, Dante\u2019s role in the discovery of the New World is absent from geographies created outside of Florence <strong>(5)<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dante and the New World I turned to the right and considered the other pole, and I saw four stars never seen except by the first people. \u2014Purgatorio 1.22\u20134 Other than key topographical landmarks Jerusalem and Cuma (often considered the entrance to Hell), early maps did not show Hell\u2019s precise location on the globe. Departing <a href=\"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/dante-and-the-new-world\/\" class=\"more-link\">&#8230;<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Dante and the New World<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":3,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"template-full-width-no-menu.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-81","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/81","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/36"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=81"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/81\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":408,"href":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/81\/revisions\/408"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/poetryofscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=81"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}