| Description : Durante degli Alighieri called "Dante" (1265‐1321),
Italian philosopher, was one of the most important poets of the European Middle Ages. With the Divine Comedy, he
overcame the Latin that had dominated until then and made Italian a literary language.
The work is considered an Italian national epic. The commemorative coin designed by
Silvia Petrassi on the occasion of his 750th birthday shows Dante, after a fresco by Domenico di Michelino created
in 1465 in the cathedral of Florence, with an open book in his left hand, in front of the Purification Hill ("Purgatorio") from
the Divine Comedy. Behind the gate guarded by an angel, the souls are atoning on the seven terraces, spiralling towards
the light. At the top is the poet's name "DANTE ALIGHIERI", below it the ligature of the country name "RI" (Repubblica Italiana,
Italian Republic), on the right is the "R" the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in
Rome. Below, in two lines, are the years "1265" and "2015" as Dante's year of birth and the year of issue of the coin,
respectively, and on the left the initials "SP" of the designer. |
