In Dante’s Inferno, the giant Antaeus lowers Dante and Virgil into the ninth circle of Hell. Dante meets Antaeus among the giants standing around the pit between the eighth and ninth circles, where they function like immense towers guarding the descent.
Antaeus comes from Greek and Roman mythology. He was a Libyan giant and son of Poseidon and Gaia who challenged travelers to wrestling matches. His strength was renewed whenever he touched the earth, so Hercules defeated him by lifting him off the ground and crushing him in the air.
Dante uses this mythic figure in a more cooperative role. Unlike the chained giants Ephialtes and Briareus, Antaeus is free enough to act and is persuaded by Virgil to set them down gently. The descent leads to Cocytus, the frozen lake of the ninth circle, where traitors are punished. Nimrod, another giant nearby, is unable to communicate coherently because of the confusion associated with Babel.