A Frosty Morning at Coltishall Possibly 1890 - 1893

This platinum print of a frosty morning at Coltishall was captured by Peter Henry Emerson. The scene is quiet and serene, dominated by the still water and the frosted vegetation along the bank. Note the bridge in the background, a symbol of connection and transition, rendered almost ethereal in the winter mist. Bridges have long served as metaphors for life’s passages, evoking the crossing from one state to another. Consider its echoes in ancient Roman pontifex, where bridge-builders were also priests, linking the earthly and divine. Here, Emerson captures not just a physical space, but a moment laden with psychological weight – the quiet, reflective pause before life's onward journey. Like a recurring dream, the image of a bridge calls to us across time, reminding us of our own crossings and continuities.