Piazzale Dante Alighieri

Its name is not only a tribute to the “Supreme Poet,” but also celebrates a historical and gastronomic connection immortalized by Dante himself in the Divine Comedy.

Dante explicitly mentions the delicious eels of Bolsena in Canto XXIV of Purgatory (third terrace, among the gluttons), where the poet meets the soul of Pope Martin IV (Simón de Brion), known for his excessive passion for this local dish.

Here the pope is purifying his sin of gluttony, and the specific verses, spoken by Bonagiunta Orbicciani, are:

«…e quella faccia\n
di là da lui più che l’altre trapunta\n
ebbe la Santa Chiesa in le sue braccia:\n
dal Torso fu, e purga per digiuno\n
l’anguille di Bolsena e la vernaccia.»

(Purgatorio, XXIV, vv. 20-24)