Postmester Frederik Carl Harboe (?) 1764

Jens Juel painted this portrait, Postmester Frederik Carl Harboe (?), with oil on canvas. The letters strewn across the desk speak to Harboe’s profession, and his connection to the outside world, both near and far. Let’s consider the ship at sea in the background. In Western art, ships frequently symbolize journeys, the traversing of both physical and metaphorical distances. Often, the ship suggests the journey of life, the voyage of the soul. Think of the “Ship of Fools,” which reflects the chaos and folly of human existence. The ship calls to mind the ever-changing sea, a metaphor for the unconscious. Note how the horizon line blends into the clouds, implying the convergence of the known and the unknown. The sea, in its vastness and mystery, has captivated us, and the ship offers a means of navigating this psychological space. This image resonates with a collective memory, a deep-seated human fascination with exploration, with the challenges and uncertainties inherent in charting a course through life.