Slutningsvignet til Henrik Ibsen, "Terje Vigen" 1870 - 1881

This closing vignette to Henrik Ibsen’s "Terje Vigen", by an anonymous artist, presents a landscape rendered with delicate lines and textural contrasts. The composition is divided into foreground and background, with a dense thicket of grass and foliage giving way to a distant body of water and horizon. The artist uses etching to explore themes of nature and the sublime. The detailed lines create a contrast between foreground and background, drawing the eye through to the open horizon. We can interpret this as nature's indifference to human drama, where the small grave is overwhelmed by nature's indifference, inviting contemplation on mortality and nature's enduring presence. The vignette does not end with a period but rather opens up onto an eternal horizon of re-interpretation, underscoring the transient nature of human life against the backdrop of the infinite horizon.