Restanten van een bakkerij te Pompeï 1863 - 1875

Giorgio Sommer captured this photograph of the remnants of a bakery in Pompeii. The image presents the communal ovens alongside the conical mills, their forms strangely reminiscent of ancient burial mounds. Consider the oven's arch, a motif echoing through time from Roman aqueducts to cathedral entrances, each embodying an idea of passage and transformation. Flour mills have also been present since the beginning of time in different shapes and forms. These utilitarian objects, found across cultures, transcend mere function, turning into silent witnesses of human endeavor. These mills of Pompeii, now frozen in time, echo the ancient cycle of sowing, reaping, and grinding. It is not just grain they process, but also the raw stuff of life itself. This resonates deeply within our collective memory. The act of baking bread carries emotional weight, evoking a sense of nostalgia and the warmth of human connection. It's a fundamental aspect of human life that we often overlook.