Koetsen en aangemeerde stoomschepen in New Orleans 1863 - 1897

This photograph shows coaches and moored steamships in New Orleans. The steamships, with their towering smokestacks, dominate the scene. These stacks, while functional, serve as a phallic symbol of power, technology and progress. Consider the obelisks of ancient Egypt, also reaching skyward. They, too, symbolized power, often associated with the divine. Now, fast forward, and the smokestacks of the industrial era echo this primal symbolism. The horse-drawn carriages in the foreground, markers of civilian life, seem dwarfed by the industrial giants. This photograph captures a pivotal moment—the shift from an agrarian past to an industrialized future, resonating within us, reminding us of our own transformations and the symbols that guide our perception of progress. A cyclical return.