Henry Fuseli
Virgil, Dante and Geryon

Artwork Detail
In the Divine Comedy, Dante and Virgil, his guide from the classical world, descend through the different levels of Inferno. At the eighth Circle they come across its Guardian, the three-bodied giant, Geryon. He agrees to carry them down to the lowest region of Hell, and they climb upon his back. In Fuseli's drawing, Satan is prefigured in the tail that lashes out over the heads of the two figures. It is similar to a forked tongue, as Geryon is a symbol of Fraud. (Monsters and Maidens, 2004)
- Title
- Virgil, Dante and Geryon
- Artist/creator
- Production date
- 1811
- Medium
- pen and ink
- Dimensions
- 198 x 293 mm
- Credit line
- Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, purchased 1965
- Accession no
- 1965/53
- Copyright
- No known copyright restrictions
- Department
- International Art
- Display status
- Not on display
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