SOURCE: Lappin, Anthony. “Introduction to the Auto da Barca do Inferno.” In Gil Vicente: Three Discovery Plays, edited and translated by Anthony Lappin, pp. 1-23. Warminster England: Aris & Phillips Ltd., 1997.

In the following excerpt, Lappin discusses Auto da Barca do Inferno and explains its importance in any attempt to understand Vicente's early career.

Life and Works of Gil Vicente

Gil Vicente found remarkable professional success throughout his life. One might conceive of his career as that of a proficient social climber. Born to a goldsmith father, Martim Vicente, in Guimarães, most probably between 1465 and 1470, Gil reached the leading positions in his own trade through royal patronage and, after his death, left his children in advantageous positions at court.¹

Vicente, in his professional capacity as a goldsmith, was commissioned by Manuel I (r. 1495-1521) in 1503 to produce a monstrance for the monastery of the Jerónimos in Bel...