The two poems are the 68-verse Vidimus in nigris albo patiente lituris and the 97-verse Velleribus Colchis prepes detectus Eous.
[1] Shortly before the first poem's composition, Giovanni del Virgilio, a Latin poet living in Bologna, sent an eclogue to Dante Alighieri in Ravenna inviting him to adopt the Latin bucolic style of poetry, which was, at the time, more popular and highly regarded.
He expressed his desire to achieve that same renown, not through the popular Latin style, but through the quality of his Commedia, written in the common vernacular, which he sent Giovanni an excerpt of.
The poem also contains philosophical reflections on poetic glory and Dante's desire to someday return from his exile to his hometown of Florence and be recognized for his abilities there.
Dante replied in 1320 with the second eclogue, explaining the danger of traveling to Bologna as a result of his exile.