Interieur van de familie De Schamphelaere (Gent, België) met vier personen en een stereokijker c. 1890 - 1910

This stereoscopic image captures the family De Schamphelaere in their home, likely in the late 19th century, by Oswald De Schamphelaere. The interior is adorned with circular plates, a motif echoing ancient Roman domestic settings, where displayed shields denoted lineage and status. Consider how these decorative plates, initially symbols of protection and ancestral pride, evolve through time. In medieval Europe, similar forms appear as heraldic emblems, adorning castles and banners, signifying power and allegiance. Here, in a bourgeois home, they resurface, transformed into domestic ornaments, whispering tales of nobility and cultural aspirations. This transformation embodies a poignant psychological aspect, a longing for connection with a storied past, where objects act as conduits for collective memory. The plates, like echoes from different epochs, remind us of how symbols traverse time, reshaping meaning, yet retaining the power to stir deep, subconscious connections.