As Langdon continued on toward the elbow of the square?? he could
see?? directly ahead in the distance?? the shimmering blue glass dial of the
St. Mark??s Clock Tower?the same astronomical clock through which
James Bond had thrown a villain in the film Moonraker.
The Tetrarchs statue was well known for its missing foot?? broken
off while it was being plundered from Constantinople in the thirteenth
century. Miraculously?? in the 1960s?? the foot was unearthed in Istanbul.
Venice petitioned for the missing piece of statue?? but the Turkish authorities
replied with a simple message: You stole the statue?we??re keeping our
foot.
Amid a contour of spires and domes?? a single illuminated facade dominated
Langdon??s field of view. The building was an imposing stone fortress
with a notched parapet and a three-hundred-foot tower that swelled
near the top?? bulging outward into a massive machicolated battlement.
Langdon found himself standing before a familiar face?that of Dante Alighieri.
Depicted in the legendary fresco by Michelino?? the great poet stood before
Mount Purgatory and held forth in his hands?? as if in humble offering??
his masterpiece The Divine Comedy.
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Q&A with Dan Brown
Q. Inferno refers to Dante Alighieri?s The Divine Comedy. What is Dantes significance? What features of his work or life inspired you?
A. The Divine Comedylike The Mona Lisais one of those rare artistic achievements that transcends its moment in history and becomes an enduring cultural touchstone. Like Beethovens Ninth Symphony The Divine Comedy speaks to us centuries after its creation and is considered an example of one of the finest works ever produced in its artistic field. For me the most captivating quality of Dante Alighieri is his staggering influence on culture religion history and the arts. In addition to codifying the early Christian vision of Hell Dantes work has inspired some of historys greatest luminariesLongfellow Chaucer Borges Tchaikovsky Liszt Monteverdi Michelangelo Blake Dal?and even a few modern video game designers. Despite Dantes enduring influence on the arts however most of us today have only a vague notion of what his work actually saysboth literally and symbolically (which of course is of great interest to Robert Langdon). A few years ago I became very excited about the prospect of writing a contemporary thriller that incorporated the philosophy history and text of Dantes timeless descent into The Inferno.
Q. Where did do your research for Inferno? How long did you spend on it?
A. Researching Inferno began with six months of reading including several translations of The Divine Comedy various annotations by Dante scholars historical texts about Dantes life and philosophies as well as a lot of background reading on Florence itself. At the same time I was poring over all the new scientific information that I could find on a cutting edge technology that I had decided to incorporate into the novel. Once I had enough understanding of these topics to proceed I traveled to Florence and Venice where I was fortunate to meet with some wonderful art historians librarians and other scholars who helped me enormously.
Once this initial phase of research was complete?? I began outlining and writing the novel. As is always the case?? when a book begins to take shape?? I am drawn in unexpected directions that require additional research. This was also the case with Inferno?? which took about 3 years from conception to publication.
With respect to the process?? the success of these novels has been a bit of a Catch-22. On one hand?? I now have wonderfu