Gezicht op het interieur van de San Marco in Venetië before 1884

Carl Heinrich Jacobi captured this photograph of the interior of San Marco in Venice with great attention to its symbolic weight. The basilica is adorned with figures of angels and saints, their presence serving as intermediaries between the earthly and the divine. Consider the pervasive motif of the angel, here rendered in Byzantine-influenced mosaics. These winged messengers, ubiquitous in Christian iconography, carry echoes of earlier pagan deities like Hermes, embodying a synthesis of cultural memory. We find them in Roman art, too, as winged victories. The repetition of these forms across centuries speaks to a deep psychological need for connection with the transcendent. It's a powerful force engaging viewers on a subconscious level through these shared symbols. The evolution of the angel, from pagan deity to Christian messenger, demonstrates the non-linear, cyclical progression of symbols. Their meanings shift over time, yet their underlying emotional and spiritual resonance remains.