Untitled 

Henry William Banks Davis captured this serene landscape with oil on canvas, sometime during his lifetime. Notice how the water dominates the foreground, its gentle flow inviting contemplation. Rivers, throughout art history, aren't merely bodies of water. They are symbols of life's journey, ever-flowing and changing. Think of the ancient Greeks who saw rivers as gods, like Oceanus, the great, all-encircling river. Similarly, in Chinese landscape painting, water embodies vital energy, Qi, animating the scene. Even the act of crossing water appears in different contexts, from the ancient Egyptians journey to the afterlife navigated by boat, to the river Styx in Greek mythology, a boundary of the underworld. This motif, laden with psychological weight, taps into our collective consciousness, evoking themes of transition, purification, and the passage of time. So, let the sight of this painting and its flowing river remind you of the timeless cycle of existence.