The Circle of the Thieves; Agnolo Brunelleschi Attacked by a Six-Footed Serpent

The Circle of the Thieves; Agnolo Brunelleschi Attacked by a Six-Footed Serpent by William Blake is a powerful engraving created in 1827. This work belongs to a significant, yet ultimately unfinished, series of illustrations Blake undertook late in his career, interpreting scenes from Dante Alighieri’s Inferno. The composition depicts the dramatic encounter in the seventh bolgia (trench) of the Eighth Circle, where the Florentine thief Agnolo Brunelleschi is attacked and transformed by a monstrous, six-footed serpent as punishment for his sins.

As a highly skilled printmaker, Blake utilized the precise lines and stark contrasts of the engraving medium to convey the terror and bodily violence of the transformation, characteristic of the powerful visionary art produced during the British Romantic period. Created between 1826 to 1850, the scene emphasizes movement and psychological distress through the depiction of contorted, muscular forms wrestling with the human figure. Blake’s masterful handling of the print medium allows the viewer to focus on the grotesque and theological horror described in Dante’s Canto XXV.

The detailed craftsmanship evident in this piece reflects Blake’s lifelong dedication to combining poetry, visual art, and spiritual allegory into unified narratives. Although the complete set of Dante illustrations remained unrealized at the time of the artist's death, this particular engraving stands as a key example of his profound engagement with literary source material. This striking work, showcasing the technical brilliance of Blake's prints, is held within the collection of the National Gallery of Art (NGA). As a historically important piece of British art, reproductions and high-resolution images frequently circulate in the public domain, ensuring continued study of Blake's intricate designs.