Landschap met huifkar over een brug 1655 - 1667

This etching, made by Romeyn de Hooghe, presents a scene dominated by a horse-drawn wagon crossing a bridge, a motif laden with historical and cultural weight. Wagons, since antiquity, have symbolized journeys, migrations, and the transport of goods and people. Consider the Ark of the Covenant, a mobile chest carried across the desert, or the Trojan Horse, a vessel of deception. The wagon here, filled with unseen figures, evokes both the promise of passage and the potential for concealed intentions. The bridge itself is a potent symbol, representing a transition, a connection between two worlds, or a crossing from one state of being to another. We might also consider how, in alchemical traditions, bridges symbolize the passage from base metals to gold, signifying spiritual transformation. The emotional resonance of this image lies in its suggestion of movement and change, tapping into our collective subconscious anxieties and hopes about the unknown destinations that await us. This image is not just a depiction of a wagon crossing a bridge, but an enduring echo of humanity's perpetual journey through time.