Gezicht op het kasteel De Gelderse Toren en gezicht op Spankeren 1750 - 1792

This print, made by Hendrik Spilman in 1743, captures two distinct yet interconnected views of the Dutch landscape. Above, we see the Gelderse Toren castle; below, the village of Spankeren is pictured, with a church as its focal point. The church, with its spire reaching towards the heavens, serves as a potent symbol of faith and community. The spire, found across time and cultures, has been a marker of sacred spaces, a silent witness to human history. Think of the Egyptian obelisks, reaching to the sun god Ra, or the minarets of Islam, calling the faithful to prayer. Each serves as an axis mundi, connecting the earthly and divine realms. The emotional and psychological resonance of these forms persists, tapping into our collective memory. They evoke the eternal human quest for meaning, manifested in architectural forms across the ages. The echoes of these powerful symbols continue to resonate today, reminding us of the cyclical nature of human experience.