The Circle of the Falsifiers; Dante and Virgil Covering their Noses because of the stench

The print The Circle of the Falsifiers; Dante and Virgil Covering their Noses because of the stench by William Blake and Harry Hoehn captures a visceral moment from Canto XXIX of Dante Alighieri’s Inferno. This image depicts the travelers encountering the wretched inhabitants of the tenth Bolgia, the final ditch of the eighth circle, reserved for the Falsifiers who are perpetually tormented by disease and corruption. Executed in 1827, the artwork is an engraving, specifically a restrike of Blake’s original design, carried out by Hoehn.

The composition centers on the figures of the poets, who stand above the pit observing the afflicted souls. The dramatic visual focus rests specifically on Dante and Virgil, who recoil from the noxious atmosphere, indicated clearly by their protective gesture of covering their noses against the terrible stench emanating from the damned below. Blake’s final sequence of illustrations for Dante’s epic, completed shortly before his death, is renowned for its energetic linear style and profound spiritual intensity. Hoehn’s meticulous execution of this restrike preserves the unsettling and terrifying vision Blake conceived for this moral and physical decay.

Created during the British period spanning 1826 to 1850, this piece is a pivotal example of graphic arts adapting classical literature. Blake’s interpretive prints were highly influential, forming a major contribution to the history of illustrated literature. The subsequent production of this restrike engraving ensured the widespread appreciation and longevity of Blake’s artistic vision, even after his passing. As a key example of nineteenth-century prints and design, the work resides in the permanent collection of the National Gallery of Art, cementing its place as an accessible study in the history of British illustration and potentially available through public domain resources.