Briefkaart aan Philip Zilcken before 1898

This is Charles Haslewood Shannon’s "Briefkaart aan Philip Zilcken," a simple card that bears symbols laden with meaning. Consider the stamps. One depicts a royal figure, embodying authority and the state, reminiscent of ancient Roman emperors on coins. The circular postmarks act as temporal markers, symbols of fleeting moments captured and transported across space, echoing the cyclical nature of time itself. These circles remind us of the ouroboros, the snake eating its tail, a symbol of eternity and constant renewal. In a way, it mirrors the journey of images through history, always returning, transformed, but still carrying echoes of their past. Note how these marks strike through the information on the card itself, suggesting the act of sending and receiving is an interruption that disturbs the information being conveyed. This mirrors how collective memory works: distorting, reshaping, and reinterpreting the past. This card, now an artifact, is also a testament to the cyclical nature of communication and the enduring power of symbols.