Monument voor Christoffel Columbus op het Plaza de Colón in Madrid c. 1880 - 1890

Juan Laurent captured the "Monument to Christopher Columbus in the Plaza de Colón in Madrid" in a photograph. Columbus, perched atop a pillar, is not merely a historical figure here; he embodies the spirit of discovery, a concept stretching back to antiquity with figures like Hermes, the messenger of the gods. Columbus's statue echoes the raised arm of classical orators, yet here it signifies not just speech but conquest and dominion. Consider, too, how this pillar parallels ancient obelisks, symbols of power and connection to the divine, transplanted by the Romans across their empire. The monument elicits a complex mix of admiration and introspection, the collective memory of triumph intertwined with the shadows of its cost. The image stirs deep, subconscious recognition of both ambition and its consequences. The image of Columbus thus becomes part of an ongoing historical and cultural narrative, one that is always unfolding and being reinterpreted.