Bulletin de la Société belge d'astronomie : comptes rendues des séances mensuelles de la Société et revue des sciences d'observation : astronomie, météorologie, géodésie et physique du globe c. 1898

This is the 1898 bulletin of the Société Belge d'Astronomie. Notice the figure at the bottom, a small rendering of Atlas, burdened, as in Greek myth, with a globe on his shoulders. Atlas’s image has served through antiquity and the Renaissance as a symbol of endurance, but also of profound existential weight. His figure reminds us of the strain of human existence and the continuous effort to comprehend the cosmos. Consider how, in earlier depictions, Atlas was often shown holding up the heavens themselves. Here, however, he is shown with a terrestrial globe, symbolizing not just astronomical study, but also the burden of earthly knowledge. The image touches on the psychoanalytic concept of collective memory, how inherited symbols can deeply resonate. The appearance of Atlas here speaks to the cyclical return and adaptation of symbols, illustrating the ongoing human endeavor to interpret our world.