...the 1985 trade edition of his Dante’s Inferno: The First Part of the Divine Comedy of Dante Alighieri. Phillips began illustrating and translating the Inferno in the late seventies, and published in a deluxe, limited edition in 1983. Demand was such that a trade edition was issue by Thames and Hudson two years later. Dante’s Inferno represents the first and most famous part of the Divine Comedy (1308-21) and tells the story of the three realms of the dead. It is full of the gruesome punishments meted out to the unfortunate souls sent to Hell—as observed by Dante as he travels through the circles of Hell with his guide, the Roman poet Virgil. It is one of the few undisputed masterpieces of European literature and Phillips’ reinterpretation is one of the most remarkable artist’s books of the 29th century. (http://blogs.princeton.edu/graphicarts/2007/10/) In July 1982, in his prelude to this publication, Phillips recalled finding a lavish, red, gilded edition of Dante's Inferno illustrated by Gustave Dore while collecting books for pulping for the World War II effort. It was one of the grandest books he had ever seen and stayed in his house for a while before it was taken to the depot. Phillips writes, I learned how early one's destiny can be sealed or at least signposted... Actually before I knew this [story] I had already, from reprints, recycled many of Dore's illustrations in quite another way. Phillips intended that his illustrations should give a visual commentary to Dante's texts. As he writes in his notebook, The range of imagery matches Dante in breath encompassing everything from Greek mythology to the Berlin Wall, from scriptural reference to a scene in an abattoir, and from alchemical signs to lavatory graffiti. And the range of modes of expression is similarly wide, including as it does, early calligraphy, collage, golden section drawings, maps, dragons, doctored photographs, references to other past artworks and specially programmed computer generated graphics. "I have tried in this present version of Dante's Inferno which I have translated and illustrated to make the book a container for the energy usually expended on large scale paintings..." The artist thus tries to reveal the artist in the poet and the poet helps to uncover/release the poet in the artist. The book is made up of 34 cantos, the title pages and the colophon. Each canto is on 3 sheets (12 pages), making a total of 108 sheets (432 pages) in the book. There are 139 illustrations. The page size is 16 1/2 x 12 1/2 inches (42 x 31.5 centimetres). (http://www.tomphillips.co.uk/works/artists-books/item/5287-dantes-inferno#)