Virtues: Valley of Rulers, Purgatorio 8   When Virgil describes to Sordello his position in the afterlife (assigned to Limbo, the first circle of Hell), he says he resides among those who while "not clothed in the three holy virtues" did in fact follow the other virtues (7.34-6). These "other virtues" are the four cardinal virtues, also known as the moral or classical virtues: fortitude, temperance, justice, and prudence. Their place in medieval Christian thought, based on such classical authorities as Plato, Aristotle, and Cicero, was established by Ambrose and, later, Thomas Aquinas. The three holy (or theological virtues) are faith, hope, and charity. They were first listed as a group by the apostle Paul (1 Cor. 13:13). The stars seen in Purgatory are likely meant to symbolize the virtues: Dante initially sees four stars that illuminate Cato's face (1.22-39), and he now learns that their position in the sky has been taken by three other stars (8.88-93).