Stadsgezicht in Luzern met de Reuss before 1868

Stephen Thompson captured this image of a cityscape in Luzern with the Reuss. Here, the steady, flowing river echoes the pulse of life, a motif as ancient as civilization itself. Water has long served as a profound symbol of purification, renewal, and the subconscious—think of the river Styx, the mythical boundary between the living and the dead. The mirrored reflection of buildings in the Reuss is suggestive of a deeper realm of psyche. The ordered facades of the buildings, juxtaposed with the fluid, reflective water, evokes an ancient dance between Apollonian order and Dionysian chaos. It reminds me of how the static perfection sought in classical architecture is forever caught in flux, changing with the flow of time and the shifting currents of human experience. This image thus encapsulates the continuous interplay between the eternal and the temporal, inviting us to reflect on the transient nature of our existence.