Balustrade met reliëf in de San Marco in Venetië before 1885

This is a photograph of a balustrade with relief in the San Marco in Venice by Carl Heinrich Jacobi. Jacobi, born in 1824, operated within a 19th-century European society undergoing rapid industrialization and urbanization, influencing artistic concerns. Considering this historical context, the image captures the ornate details of the balustrade, a structure historically associated with power and privilege. The San Marco would have served as a backdrop for both opulent displays of Venetian wealth and the everyday lives of its citizens. Who had access to such spaces? How did the detailed relief affirm or challenge existing social hierarchies? The photograph asks us to reflect on who is memorialized in architecture, and whose stories are often left untold. It’s an invitation to reflect on the narratives and power structures embedded within the built environment.