Malebranche (Divine Comedy)

"Rubicante" redirects here. For the character from the Final Fantasy video game series, see Rubicante (Final Fantasy).
The Malebranche catch a sinner with their grappling hooks, portrayed by Gustave Doré.

The Malebranche (Italian: [ˌmaleˈbraŋke]; "Evil Claws")[1] are the demons in the Inferno of Dante's Divine Comedy who guard Bolgia Five of the Eighth Circle (Malebolge). They figure in Cantos XXI, XXII, and XXIII. Vulgar and quarrelsome, their duty is to force the corrupt politicians (barrators) to stay under the surface of a boiling lake of pitch.

  1. ^ Dorothy L. Sayers, Hell: notes on Cantos XXI and XXII, Penguin, 1949, ISBN 0-14-044006-2.