![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/32/Gustave_Dor%C3%A9_-_Dante_Alighieri_-_Inferno_-_Plate_9_%28Canto_III_-_Charon%29.jpg/500px-Gustave_Dor%C3%A9_-_Dante_Alighieri_-_Inferno_-_Plate_9_%28Canto_III_-_Charon%29.jpg)
Credit: Gustave Doré
Divine Comedy is an epic poem written by Dante Alighieri. Widely considered the preeminent work of Italian literature, and a masterpiece of world literature, it is divided into three parts; Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. This scene, from Inferno, depicts Charon approaching to ferry souls across the subterranean river Acheron.