Ragged rock face 

Franz Kobell rendered this landscape with pen and brown ink sometime between 1762 and 1822. The rugged rock faces, rendered with stark contrasts of light and shadow, evoke a sense of the sublime, reminding us of the insignificance of human presence before the grandeur of nature. Consider the motif of the mountain—a recurring symbol across cultures. Mountains have been historically charged with sacred significance, representing the meeting point between heaven and earth, a place of revelation and transformation. Think of Mount Olympus in Greek mythology, or Mount Sinai in the Judeo-Christian tradition. The mountain, therefore, becomes a stage upon which humanity’s drama unfolds, a psychological projection screen for our deepest anxieties and aspirations. We see a similar motif in Caspar David Friedrich's work, where the figures are often dwarfed by imposing landscapes, inviting viewers to confront their own mortality and the ephemeral nature of existence. This is not merely a depiction of physical space, but an exploration of the human soul mirrored in the natural world. The mountain persists through the ages, a silent witness to our fleeting existence.