Map of the Hell Stars

January 7, 2005 12:45 PM

You must be this tall to enter the City of Dis. Need a five-minute web break? Peruse this quick and dirty Interactive Map of Dante's Inferno. Don't forget to play the 'Drag and Drop Monsters Game' in Lower Hell! (Flash 6 or higher required)
posted by Darkman (15 comments total)

Hm. Doesn't work for me (FF/F6/W2K)... ?
posted by chasing at 12:50 PM on January 7, 2005

Just inside the great walls of Dis, and guarded by the Furries,

See? There it is, plain as day... in Dante's Inferno, no less!
posted by basicchannel at 1:05 PM on January 7, 2005

chasing: I'm using FF, F7, WinXP.

Site says Flash 6 is hunky dory...
posted by Darkman at 1:14 PM on January 7, 2005

This is a bit lacking in many respects: It lacks detail, artistic merit and interactivity. Along similar lines, but more entertaining (to me), is this quiz that determines which circle of Hell you'll be going to.
posted by picea at 1:22 PM on January 7, 2005

missing is the vestibule outside of Limbo where those who would not choose any side are condemned to chase a flag while being eaten by bees and mosquitoes.

and Lucifer is not in the ice upside-down.

i would like to have seen (and placed) Minos (the judge of the damned), Plutus (some crazy nonsense speaking monster), Cerberus (3-headed dog), Charon (the ferryman) and any of the Titans (Nimrod is my fave). and some more info about the 4 rivers of Hell. and the Dark Forest with it's She-Wolf, Lion and Leopard.

and i believe that Dante met Virgil outside the Gates, in the Dark Forest, not in Limbo. Limbo is just where Virgil "lives."

the Dorothy L. Sayers translation of Inferno has the best maps, but the most errors in the translation. the John Ciardi translation has the best notes (very necessary and informative). the Robert Pinsky translation has the best prose. and the Larry Niven/Jerry Pournelle version is the most entertaining. the Cliff-notes are completely forgettable.

here is a cleaned up copy of one of the Sayers' maps (posted without permission. someone contact me with a C&D).
posted by zombiejesus at 1:25 PM on January 7, 2005

Thanks darkman and zombiejesus. I found the flash animation a little lacking, as zombiejesus mentioned. BTW - I'm in the 5th circle of hell, according to the quiz.
posted by puke & cry at 1:56 PM on January 7, 2005

I wonder if there's a similar map to the brilliant Larry Niven novel, Inferno, kinda-sorta based on this book. I sure would like to see that, too.
posted by TheStorm at 2:08 PM on January 7, 2005

My quiz results...

The sweet light no longer strikes against your eyes. Your shade has been banished to... the Fifth Level of Hell!

Hey, is that the River Styx?

Dibs on the Jet-Ski!
posted by Darkman at 2:11 PM on January 7, 2005

TheStorm - the Niven map is crap. it's clearly been reprinted from a bad copy too many times. or do you mean an interactive/flash Niven map? i don't think such a thing exists. like to see it if it does. although, it wouldn't differ much from a good map - he only added a few things (the Builders/Destroyers, and the black Corvettes, and the slave-ship in the Phlegethon, and of course Mussolini).
posted by zombiejesus at 2:14 PM on January 7, 2005

Here's my favourite interactive Inferno map with a little bit more dimension and appropriate classical flair.
posted by elphTeq at 2:32 PM on January 7, 2005

It seems to be missing the She-Wolf of Incontinence which elphTeq's map includes.
posted by euphorb at 3:11 PM on January 7, 2005

I am all up in that 6th level, according to the quiz. I wonder if I'd gone deeper if I thought that a pimp was a good thing to be...
posted by davejay at 3:46 PM on January 7, 2005

If someone wants instant fame on the Internet, please produce an interactive, detailed topography of Dante's Inferno. I've looked for this many many times and am still surprised and disappointed some cartography/digital-spaces loving type has not produced anything.
posted by vacapinta at 5:16 PM on January 7, 2005

brilliant Larry Niven novel, Inferno

Yes! Seconded. Extremely accessible intro to Dante that made me (finally) check out the original.
posted by raygirvan at 9:14 PM on January 7, 2005

I just found the John Cleese narrated audio book of Dante's Divine Comedy....that and this map have almost circumvented the need for me to actually read it. I'm a heretic desined for the City of Dis according to that quiz.
posted by ldma at 12:29 AM on January 10, 2005