Canto XXI. Ascent to the Seventh Sphere: Saturn â€?The Contemplative; The Celestial Ladder; Peter Damiano c. 15th century

Curator: This woodcut illustration for Dante's *Paradiso* presents such a powerful visual vocabulary. Editor: It certainly does! This image, *Canto XXI. Ascent to the Seventh Sphere: Saturn,* seems to be teeming with symbolic weight. What do you see in this piece? Curator: I'm drawn to the celestial ladder. It’s Jacob's ladder, a potent symbol, here reinterpreted within Dante's vision of divine ascent, bridging the earthly and heavenly realms. Notice how the figures ascending are bathed in light. Editor: It’s fascinating to consider how these images carry cultural and religious meaning through time. I'll remember this. Curator: Indeed. Each element reveals a layer of Dante's profound contemplation. The cultural memory is strong here.