Schepen in een haven before 1892

This small photograph, 'Schepen in een haven' by William Kinnimond Burton, captures ships in a harbor, their masts creating a forest of vertical lines against the sky. The masts are reminiscent of ancient obelisks, markers of civilization and connection, yet these are mobile, suggesting a coming and going, an exchange. Ships, throughout history, have served as both instruments of exploration and exploitation, vehicles of cultural exchange, and agents of cultural imposition. Think of the ships in Turner’s paintings, often dwarfed by the sublime power of nature, or the ghost ship in Caspar David Friedrich’s work, symbols of doom. Here, the masts reaching skyward embody a longing for connection but also hint at potential conflict. The harbor, a place of gathering and departure, evokes a deep, subconscious emotional pull, a bittersweet mixture of hope and melancholy inherent in the human experience of travel and trade. This image is a potent reminder of our cyclical, ceaseless journey through time and space.