700 Years of Dante

28 Thursday Jan 2021

Posted by Un po' di pepe in Firenze, Italia, Italian language

Tags

Accademia della Crusca, Dante, Dante Alighieri, Firenze, Italian history, Italian language, Italian literature, La Divina Commedia

2021 is the 700th anniversary of the death of Dante Alighieri. Dante is known as the ‘Father of the Italian Language’. His most famous work La Divina Commedia (The Divine Comedy) is considered a masterpiece, the first and still the greatest work of literature in the Italian language and a precursor to modern fiction. In the late medieval period, Latin was the only language for education, literature and religion. La Divina Commediawas the first major work written in a language of ordinary speech or vulgare, the way people actually spoke at home. Dante combined Tuscan and other dialects, including Sicilian and Latin, establishing the modern Italian language. Even though La Divina Commedia was written in 1308-20 the language is understandable today.

La Divina Commedia is a 3 part epic poem written in the first person, emphasizing the importance of salvation and Divine love in the redemption of humanity. It explores Dante’s imaginary trip to Paradiso (Heaven), passing through L’Inferno (Hell) and Purgatorio (Purgatory). It is also a critique of famous figures of his time. The work is filled with historical, mythological and biblical references and discusses politics, religion, science, ethics and love. La Divina Commedia does not contain jokes nor is it funny. The reason it is termed a commedia is because it is not a tragedia (trajedy) and it has a happy ending.

Dante was born in Firenze in 1265. He studied philosophy, poetry, and was also an apothecary-a medieval pharmacist. This is not as strange as it sounds, since nobles in public office had to belong to one of the city guilds and books were sold by apothecaries at the time. He married Gemma Donati in 1285 and they had 3 children. Dante’s family was involved in the Guelfi/Ghibellini (Guelph/Ghibelline) power struggles. The Guelfi supported the Papacy and the Ghibellini supported the Holy Roman Emperor -even though there was not one at the time.

The Guelfi split into 2 groups because the Pope kept interfering with internal matters in Firenze. Guelfi Bianchi (White Guelphs) did not want the Pope involved in city politics and Guelfi Neri (Black Guelphs) supported complete Pope authority. Dante’s family were Guelfi Bianchi. In 1302, while Dante was in Roma as an ambassador, Firenze was occupied by the Guelfi Neri. The Guelfi Bianchi, including Dante and his sons, were exiled. A few years later, other Guelfi Bianchi in exile were pardoned- but not Dante. He was quite the badass in exile and burnt his bridges by writing many nasty letters. Dante was offered amnesty in 1315, but it came with conditions and a heavy fine, which he was not able to pay.

Dante wrote La Divina Commedia while in exile and ruthlessly sends everyone responsible for his banishment to eternal damnation in L’Inferno. He put a lot of effort and imagination into coming up with the horrible details! If Dante were alive today, he would probably be writing political satire.

Dante never did return to his beloved Firenze. He stayed in Roma, then moved to Ravenna, where he completed Paradiso in 1320 and died of malaria Sept 14th 1321. He is buried in the church of San Francesco. Jacopo Alighieri (1289-1348), also a poet, regained possession of his father’s confiscated property in 1343.

Firenze regretted Dante’s exile, and repeatedly asked Ravenna for his remains. A tomb was even built in 1829 in Santa Croce but all requests were refused and the tomb is empty. In June 2008, Firenze finally passed a motion rescinding his sentence and exile. As my Mamma says ‘meglio tardi che mai’-Better late than never!

700^th anniversary celebrations are happening throughout 2021, although most of them will depend on ever changing COVID 19 restrictions. There is a website for all of the 700 Dante Firenze festivities. A few examples:

Museo di Casa di Dante has a new multimedia display and a virtual tour.

L’Accademia della Crusca, Italia’s fun ‘language police’ was established in Firenze in the 16^th Century to safeguard the study of the Italian language. Their website includes ‘Parola di Dante fresca di giornata’ a Dante word of the day for each day of 2021!

La Divina Commedia is as relevant today as it was in 1320. I will leave you with an encouraging message of hope from the final phrase of l’Inferno…

‘e quindi uscimmo a riveder le stelle’– ‘hence we came forth to see the stars again’

Ciao, Cristina

Statue of Dante in Piazza Santa Croce, Firenze

San Gimignano

15 Friday Apr 2016

Posted by Un po' di pepe in Firenze, Italia, Photography, Travel

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

Dante Alighieri, Firenze, Italian history, Italy travel tips, San Gimignano, Siena, Torre Grossa, Toscana, UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Vernaccia di San Gimignano

San Gimignano’s skyline looks like a Medieval Metropolis, complete with early grattacieli (grat•tah•chee•EH•lee = skyscrapers). It was known as San Gimignano delle belle Torri -San Gimignano of the beautiful towers. The site was an Etruscan settlement, then a castello called Silvia with a walled village built around it. Silvia was renamed San Gimignano in 450 after the Bishop of Modena, who spared it from Attila the Hun’s troops.

San Gimignano became an independent town in 1199. It was prosperous, being a stopping point on La Via Francigena, the medieval pilgrimage route from Canterbury to Roma, via France. San Gimignano also traded in local zafferano (zaf•fer•RAN•noh = saffron) and wine from the white Vernaccia grape. The earliest mention of Vernaccia di San Gimignano is in the archives of 1276! In 1966, 690 years later, it was the first Italian vino bianco to receive DOC recognition.

The 13 and 14^th Centuries saw San Gimignano caught in the Guelph/Ghibelline conflicts. Read about this in Dante’s post. Wealthy San Gimignanesi built tower houses as symbols of power and wealth, as well as for protection. The height of these torri kept increasing, up to 70m high, to keep up with the neighbors. There were originally 72 torri and 14 still stand today.

Waves of plague and famine hit San Gimignano in the mid 1300’s. The ‘black death’ claimed almost half the population, and San Gimignano was now under the rule of Firenze. Fiorentino control prevented any urban development that happened in other towns. As a result, San Gimignano was preserved in a medieval ‘time warp’, retaining its original atmosphere and appearance. Little changed until the 19^th century when it became a tourism destination. Today the population is 7800 and it does have 1 traffic light! To protect San Gimignano from the effects of mass tourism, strict rules prevent modification to the appearance or intended use of buildings.

Bancomat Medievale/Medieval Bank Machine!

In 1990, the Historic Center of San Gimignano became a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its outstanding examples of medieval architecture and original urban layout.

The Cattedrale know as La Collegiata, has Masterpieces of 14^th and 15^th Century art. Inside the front façade is the Fresco of Last Judgement, Heaven and Hell by Taddeo di Bartolo (1393). The Cappella di Santa Fina with frescoes by Domenico Ghirlandaio (1475) was featured in the 1990 Franco Zeffirelli film ‘Tea with Mussolini’.

In the Palazzo Comunale is the Sala di Dante where Dante Alighieri spoke as an ambassador for the Guelphs in May 1300. The Pinacoteca has treasures by Filippino Lippi, among others. Climb the 218 steps of the adjacent 54m Torre Grossa for views of San Gimignano and the Val d’Elsa. Admission is €6.

Piazza della Cisterna is triangular with a well on an octagonal pedestal in the center, surrounded by medieval buildings. It is named for the underground cistern built in 1287 which was the main source of water for the San Gimignanesi. Piazza della Cisterna is the meeting point of the Via Francigena and the road from Pisa to Siena, so it was a happening place in medieval times.

Piazza della Cisterna, seen from Torre Grossa

San Gimignano is an easy daytrip on the bus from Firenze, Siena or Poggibonsi. There is no direct train. The train route is to change trains at Empoli to Poggibonsi and then bus from there. It’s also nice to be there in the evening or overnight when all of the daytrippers have left.

Like Alberobello, no matter how many hordes of tourists it is overrun with, San Gimignano is incantevole (een•can•teh•VOH•leh = enchanting) and definitely worth a visit. I need to go back to do ‘research’, since I have a drawer full of unfinished sketches, monotypes and etchings!

Buon Viaggio, Cristina

Dante Alighieri

31 Sunday May 2015

Posted by Un po' di pepe in Firenze, Italia, Italian language

≈ 19 Comments

Tags

Dante, Dante Alighieri, Firenze, Italian history, Italian language, Italian literature, La Divina Commedia

Statue of Dante in Piazza Santa Croce, Firenze

Auguri Dante! 2015 is the 750th anniversary of the birth of Dante. His actual birth date is unknown, but he does provide clues in ‘Paradiso’ that he was born under the sign of Gemini. In 1265, Gemini was mid May to mid June, a bit earlier than it is now.

Dante is known as the ‘Father of the Italian Language’. His most famous work La Divina Commedia (The Divine Comedy) is considered a masterpiece, the first and also the greatest work of literature in the Italian language. In the late medieval period, Latin was the only language for education, literature and religion. La Divina Commedia was the first major work written in a language of ordinary speech, the way people actually spoke at home. Dante combined Tuscan and other dialects and some Latin, establishing the modern Italian language. Even though La Divina Commedia was written in 1308-20 the language is understandable today.

La Divina Commedia is a long poem in 3 parts, emphasizing the importance of salvation and Divine love. It outlines Dante’s imaginary trip to Paradiso (Heaven), passing through L’Inferno (Hell) and Purgatorio (Purgatory) to get there. It is also a critique of famous figures of his time. The work is filled with historical references and discusses politics, religion, ethics and love. La Divina Commedia has no jokes and is not funny. The reason it is called a commedia is because it is not a tragedia (trajedy) and it has a happy ending.

Dante was born in Firenze (Florence). He studied philosophy, poetry, and was also a pharmacist because nobles in public office had to belong to one of the city’s guilds. This isn’t as strange as it sounds because books were sold by pharmacies at the time. Dante’s family was involved in the Guelfi/Ghibellini (Guelph/Ghibelline) conflicts. The Guelfi supported the Papacy and the Ghibellini supported the Holy Roman Emperor -although there wasn’t actually one at the time. The Guelfi split into 2 groups because the Pope at the time kept interfering with internal matters in Firenze. The Guelfi Bianchi (White Guelphs) did not want the Pope involved in city politics and the Guelfi Neri (Black Guelphs) supported complete Pope authority. Dante’s family were Guelfi Bianchi. In 1302, Firenze was occupied by the Guelfi Neri and the Guelfi Bianchi, including Dante, were exiled. The other Guelfi Bianchi in exile were pardoned a few years later, but not Dante. He was kind of a badass in exile and burnt his bridges by writing many nasty letters, so he stayed in Roma. Dante was offered amnesty in 1315, but there were strings attached and a heavy fine which he couldn’t pay. He wrote La Divina Commedia while in exile and managed to write all of his opponents to eternal damnation, imaginatively making up all sorts of horrible existances for them in l’Inferno. He obviously put a lot of effort into coming up with all of the horrible details! If Dante were alive today I think he would be writing political satire in Paris.

Dante never returned to his beloved Firenze. He moved to Ravenna, where he completed Paradiso and died in exile in 1321. He is buried in the the church of San Francesco. Firenze regretted what had happened and repeatedly asked for Dante’s remains. A tomb was built in 1829 in Santa Croce but the requests were refused. In June 2008, Firenze passed a motion rescinding his sentence and exile. Meglio tardi che mai/Better late than never!