Dante Plaque: Piazza del Duomo

“Virgin Mother, daughter of your son, humbler and higher than any created being, fixed purpose of eternal counsel, you so ennobled human nature that its maker did not disdain to become what he had made. In your womb love was rekindled, and through its warmth, in everlasting peace, this flower has thus come into bloom.” Dante, Paradiso, XXXIII, 1–9. Dante is ready for the final stage of his journey through the afterlife. Here in Paradise, Saint Bernard addresses a sublime prayer to the Virgin Mary, asking her to intercede so that the poet may come before God. The saint praises Mary, mother of the Redeemer and a source of hope and charity for all people, who may reach God through her. It is no coincidence that the plaque is beside the headquarters of the Archconfraternity of the Misericordia, a place closely associated with Christian charity in Florence. For more on Florence’s places of hospitality and charity, click here.