Heaven, Hell and the Human Heart
When I read the SPN Pro-Ship Bang prompt for a story based on Dante's Inferno where Sam descends into Hell to rescue Dean, I knew I had to get it. And I was so, so lucky I did, because working with @saltbind has been freaking fantastic. And so is his story.
Go read it here, now.
There was so much to work with that I kind of went a little nuts with the images, so there's a lot more under the cut. Check out my art post on AO3 for more background info and some stuff about the process, too, if you're into that kind of thing.
We're both fans of Zdzisław Beksiński and he was my inspiration for the first of the two main images for the story—Sam and Ruby on their descent through the Circles. I'm no Beksiński, but I did try to capture some of his otherworldliness and discordantly-pretty, diffuse lighting here.
I ended up with a bit of romance-novel-cover vibe here and I'm ok with that. And I will never pass up an opportunity to paint Sam's tits. ❤️
Gustav Dure's gorgeous engravings for Dante's Divine Comedy were one of the first things @saltbind referenced. I love them, too, and ended up turning some of my character concept sketches into illustrations that have a little bit of that woodcut feel to them.
Top row is Dean, Boy King Sam, and Ruby's demon form. Bottom row are Meg and Bela (I'm a little in love with this Meg).
Alastair was one of the first things I drew because I just cannot resist a good creepy monster.
In Hell's archives, there's definitely a manuscript that details Sam's journey. Here they recorded a tormented Dean and a righteously vengeful, into-his-powers Sam.
Added bonus, close-up shot of Cerberus, because he's just so damn cute.
@spnproshipbang
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hey, can you do a circles of hell post like the heaven one?
The Nine Circles of Hell 😈🔥
Dante Alighieri’s The Divine Comedy is divided into 3 parts: Inferno, Purgatorio and Paradiso. The Inferno presents us with the popular concept of Nine Circles of Hell.
Ante-Inferno
Think of this as the Ground Lobby for Hell.
The Gates of Hell have this inscription: "Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch’intrate" (Abadon all hope, ye who enter here)
Souls who couldn't choose between good and evil reside here, tortued and chased by hornets and snakes. (Seems like indecision is also a sin, haha)
There are angels here as well who chose to be on the side of neither good and evil, and they're also tormented.
After crossing the river on the boundary for hell with Charon, you meet the first level of hell:
First Circle: Limbo
The first circle is home to the unbaptized and virtuous pagans, who simply didn't know that Christ exist.
These souls have lived morally, but failed to accept Christiantiy as a religion
No physical torture, but waves of sadness flow through the souls, lamenting the fact that they're close to Heaven but aren't in it.
Retirement community of the afterlife: Hippocrates, Aristotle, Virgil, Homer, Horace, Ovid, Socrates, Plato, Saladin
Second Circle: Lust
The wind-buffeted second circle of Hell is the final destination of the lustful and adulterous.
Souls are blown about in a violent storm, without hope of rest. They are torn in a raging storm and thrown against rocks.
Cleopatra and Helen of Troy were among its most famous residents. Francesca da Rimini and her lover Paolo.
Third Circle: Gluttony
Those who overindulge themselves are forced to lie in vile, freezing slush, guarded by Ceberus
Unable to move, they lay on the ground forever while being hurled with sweage and dirt.
Ciacco of Florence is here.
Fourth Circle: Avarice & Prodigality
This section of Hell is reserved for the money-grubbers and overly materialistic among us. Those who hoarded money come here.
The greedy battle each other, forever rolling giant boulders on each other. When they push the heavy weights, it rolls back and the process starts all over again.
Plutus guards them.
Fifth Circle: Wrath & Sulllenness
Dante tells us that the wrathful and angry souls of this circle spend eternity waging battle with each other on the banks of River of Styx.
The sullen are forced to breath below the dark waters, chocking on the black mud derived from the world above.
Fillippo Argenti is here.
───〃★ Door to Lower Hell: gate guarded by fallen angels ★〃───
Sixth Circle: Heresy
Heretics spend eternity entombed in flaming crypts in the sixth circle. Think of a graveyard with burning tombstones.
Heresy is the sin of having beliefs opposed to the Christian belief, which can be a little vague in modern times.
Florentines Farinata degil Uberti and Cavalcante de' Cavalvanti are here.
Seventh Circle: Violence
The Seventh Circle is sub-categorized into 3 smaller rings: Oter, Middle and Inner.
The outer ring is filled with blood and fire and reserved for murderers and thugs. Centaurs guard the Outer Ring, shooting criminals with arrows.
The middle ring is where, according to Dante, suicide victims go. They’re transformed into trees and fed upon by harpies.
The inner ring, a place of burning sand, is reserved for those who are violent against God and nature (blasphemers)
Eighth Circle: Fraud
Geryon, a creature symbolizing fraud, welcomes you to the eighth circle. He has a human face, a scorpion tail and giant wings.
The eighth circle is subdivided into ten trenches, where you’ll find con artists of all sorts. These trenches are called Malebolge (Evil pockets) and each contains different types of criminals who commited fraud.
Panderes and seducers, flatterers, sorcerers, false prophets, liars, thieves, people who created false money, counterfeits, impersonators, schismatics, etc. reside here.
Ninth Circle: Treachery
The final circle is a frozen wasteland occupied by history’s greatest traitors. Betrayers of are frozen in a lake of ice, and most of Satan's body is also immersed in ice.
It is divided into 4 stages: (1) Caina - traitors to family (2) Antenora - traitors to nation or politicians (3) Ptolomaea - hosts to betray theiur guests (4) Judecca - those to betray their lords/masters.
In the very center, Satan punishes the greatest betrayers of all time: Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Christ, and Brutus and Cassius who betrayed Julius Caesar.
Satan has three mouths, each of which eats a specific person: with left and right devouring Brutus and Cassius and the centre mouth devouring Judas.
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Tagged by @thecynical-idealist @expatesque and @petrichorals - thank you!
Last song: currently listening to Outro by M83 on the motorway.
Favourite colour: a dark green (forest green), but also love burgundy and a deep ocean blue.
Last film / tv show: Klaus on Netflix (a fav Christmas film)
Last book: Piranesi by Susanna Clarke - a quick reread as a start to the holidays!
Sweet / spicy / savoury: you would have asked this to me last year I would have said sweet, but as I grow I find sweetness not as appealing? I’d probably go for savoury because cheese. I will never say no to some good dark chocolate though…
Last thing I looked up: Andrew Scott hamlet (Did I change this from googled to looked up? Yes. It’s 2023 crew we’ve got to move onto other browsers and search engines)
Current obsession(s): Unreal Unearth by Hozier (and the song Francesca); language learning and linguistics (particularly Creoles, dialects and pidgins); learning crafts and trades.
Tagging @hrimceald @littleannasun @lostand-notfound @kxowledge @semperfeminae @thecrownedgoddess @colubrina @stardustings
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Would you please make an ID Pack related to Dante’s Inferno? Tysm
WARNING: I HAD NO CREATIVITY WHATSOEVER WHILE MAKING THIS, NOR DID I DO VERY MUCH RESEARCH!!
NAMES
Simmer, Scorch, Flame, Ember, Fire, Blaze, Phoenix, Inferno
PRONOUNS
De/dem/demonself or demonicself, dai/daim/daimonself, dae/daem/daemonself, fi/fien/fiendself, in/infe/infernalself, un/unho/unholyself, wi/wick/wickedself, oc/occu/occultself, si/sin/sinself, ri/rit/ritualself, te/ter/terrorself, ma/mani/maniacalself, co/cond/condemseld or condemedself, da/damn/damnself or damnedself
Titles
Demonic one, (prn) who is demonic, (prn) who is on a journey to Hell, hellish one, unholy one, I honestly have no idea anymore!
SORRY I TOOK SO LONG TO SEE THIS. I'M ON AND OFF OF TUMBLR A LOT!! ALSO IDK HOW TO REMOVE THE c/o THING :'/
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