Ruïnes met een aantal poserende mannen, Persepolis c. 1880 - 1910

Antoine Sevruguin made this photograph of ruins with a number of posing men, Persepolis, in the late 19th or early 20th century. The sepia tones of the photograph lend an aged, timeless quality to the scene, emphasizing the ruins' silent monumentality. The composition is structured by strong vertical elements; columns and remnants of walls rise starkly from the flat, barren ground. The arrangement of these forms creates a play of light and shadow, texture, and mass that engages with the viewer's perception of space and depth. The small group of men at the base of the ruins serves to emphasize the immense scale of the architecture. Their presence introduces a human element into the scene. This juxtaposition underscores the transience of human life against the enduring presence of history and architecture. Sevruguin challenges fixed notions of time and culture by capturing the Persian past for a contemporary audience. The photograph presents a semiotic space where the ruins stand as signs, inviting reflection on the relationship between past and present.