Binnenplaats van visserswoning before 1890

Eugène Cicéri sketched this courtyard of a fisherman's dwelling, using pen and brush, in the 19th century. The four vignettes show us aspects of the lives of those who lived by the sea. Notice the ladders and stairs in the first image – symbols of ascension, but also precariousness, seen across cultures, from Jacob's Ladder in religious texts to the Tower of Babel's ambition. Here, their humble placement speaks to daily toil rather than grand aspiration. The boat, a constant motif across civilizations, reappears in the lower left, promising adventure but hinting at the unknown, a vessel for both hope and potential tragedy. From ancient Egyptian funerary boats carrying souls to the afterlife, to Viking longships navigating uncharted waters, the boat embodies transition and the crossing of boundaries. These symbols are not linear, but cyclical, recurring throughout history, echoing the ebb and flow of human experience itself. They represent the enduring connection between humanity, the sea, and the eternal quest for meaning.