808 
Alberico, but even many fingle traits and 
vifions ; for both works treat of an ecftatic 
journey through Hel!, Purgatory, and Pa- 
radife, and he adduced two examples, 
which prove their exact agreement in the 
detail of particular deicriptions. 
Bottari, however, paffed over many 
others, which have been noticed by P. 
Coftanzi, who has carefully comparéd the 
two works. From the refult of his la- 
bours, it appears, that Dante borrowed 
not only the general outline, but likewile 
a great part of the materials of his paem, 
from the above-mentioned Vifion of Al- 
berico ; fo that it may be confidered as the 
firft fketch of a pigture, which Dante af- 
terwards finifhed. with fcientific kill, 
adorning it with the moft vivid colours, 
and all the ornaments fuggefed by his 
bold and vigorous imagination. 
The little vifionift Alberico was bora 
in the village of Sette Fratri, belonging 
to the diocefe of Sora, in the kingdom of 
Napies, about the beginning of the 12th 
century. He was defcended from a noble 
family, and, when nine years of age,-was 
attacked by a dangerous difeafe, in confe- 
quence of which he lay nine days in a 
ftate of infenfibility; but, during this 
trance, his foul was very bufily employed. 
He thought that he was carried aloft by a 
Jarge white dove, and then conducted by 
St. Peter and two angels through purga- 
tory to hell to view the punifhments of 
fin, and the various claffes of finners ; re- 
ative to which his guide did not fail to 
give him every necefiary explanation; and 
then led him through the feven heavens to 
Paradife, to fee the glory and happinefs of 
the faints. Having again fafely returned to 
the eaith, he awoke, and, foonafter recover- 
ing fronvhis illnefs, entered, in his tenth 
year, into the order of the Monks of 
Monte Cafino, who then, and till the year 
1123, were governed by Abbot Girardi. 
About the fame time, Pietro Diacono, 
the hiftorian of his erder and of this vi- 
fion, who was defcended from the noble 
and powerful family of the Counts of Tuf- 
culum, was dedicated by his parents to 
the fame order, when only a child of five 
years of age. Pietro grew up in the mo- 
natiery along with young Alberico, and 
was an eye-witnels of the pious and exem- 
plary life he led,and of his mind being con- 
tinually engaged in imeditating on the 
{cenes which had been prefented to his 
view during his ectiafy. The hiftory of 
this wonderiul vifion had, in the mean 
time, fpread from mouth to mouth, and 
had been fo disfigured and falfified by ad- 
ditions and milapprehenfions, that the 
® 
Sonice of Dante’s Commedia: 
[Nov. 1 
Abbot Girardi ordered Guido, one of his: | 
Menks, to write a faithful account of it 
from the mouth of Alberico himfelf. But, 
in the ccurfe of time, fo many errors had 
crept into the copies of this narrative, 
which were circulated in manufcript, that 
in the year 1127 already, the then Abbot, 
Senioretto, found it neceflary, for the fake 
of truth, to order a new revifion and cor- 
rection of it; which the pious Alberico, 
who was probably fo wholly engaged with 
his prayers and contemplations, that he 
had neither time nor inclination to learn to 
write, performed in three days, with the 
affiftance of the above-mentioned Pietro - 
Diacono. The original of this corrected 
Hiftory is now in the library of the Mo- 
naftery of Monte Cafino, and a Letter is 
prefixed, figned with the name of Albe- 
rico, in which an account is given of the 
“manner in which it bad been corrupted, 
and again reftored to its genuine authen- 
ticity. It appears, that this ftory had, 
fince the beginning of the twelfth century, 
been circulated all over Italy, and every 
where read and Jiftened to with fuch avidi- 
ty, that the painters of that age drew their 
reprefentations of hell from the deferip- 
tion of Alberico, as being an eye-witnefs. 
Such an ancient painting, executed in the 
twelfth century, fill exifts in an old 
church at the foot of Monte Ocra, whica- 
now bears the name of Madonna della. 
Grotta, and lies near the village of Foffa, 
in the diocefe of Aguila. On viewing 
this picture, a perfon unacquainted with 
the Vifion of Alberico would fuppofe, either 
that the fubje&t of it wastakenfrom Dante, 
or that the poet had borrowed from it. 
The following correfponding paflages 
and traits from the , Vifion of Alberico 
and that of Dante will enable our. readers 
to decide for themfelves, whether. it be 
probable or not, that Dante had drawn 
from this fource: A bird, refembling a 
white dove, lifts up the boy Alberico by 
the hair of his head: and he is thea con-, 
duéted, by St. Peter and two angels, 
through the region of torments. Dante, 
in like manner, afcends from the earth on 
an eagle, till he reaches the gates of pur- 
gatory ; and Virgil is his conduétor.—Al- 
berico finifhes his tour in nine days, and 
Dante in nearly the fame {pace of time; 
for when, on Eafter-day, he arrives fafely 
in Paradife, he had been already feven 
days on his journey.—Alberico fees a 
large lake, which feems to him to be full 
of blood: but the Apofile informs him 
that it does not contain blood, but fire, in, 
which murderers are punifhed, and that it 
has the appearance of hlood merely on ac- 
count 
iD 
