Gezicht op Nice c. 1865

This stereograph captures Nice with a stark realism through Jean Andrieu's lens. The river, bridged and flanked by buildings, divides the landscape, yet the city persists, sprawling under the unblinking gaze of the camera. Consider the river itself, a motif as old as civilization. Water, the source of life, but also a symbol of change, of the unstoppable flow of time. In ancient mythologies, rivers often delineate boundaries, both physical and metaphysical, much like the Styx separating the living from the dead. Here, the river bisects Nice, yet the bridges offer connection, a theme echoed in the enduring human quest to overcome divisions. Notice, too, how the buildings cluster, mirroring humanity's impulse to congregate, to build community against the uncertain future, their rooftops aligned like a phalanx. It's a tableau of endurance, of adaptation. This image, therefore, is not merely a view of Nice, but a study in human resilience, in the face of time’s relentless current.