Oorsprong van de rivier Citarum, Priangan, West-Java c. 1816 - 1846

Adrianus Johannes Bik rendered this drawing of the Citarum River's origin in Priangan, West-Java using graphite. Dominating the scene are the mountains, archetypal symbols of permanence, spirituality, and the sublime. Across cultures, mountains are often seen as sacred, bridging the earthly and divine realms. Here, they loom in the background, silent witnesses to the river's genesis. Water, like the river, is a powerful symbol of life, purification, and the ever-changing flow of existence. Its presence in art transcends time, echoing in ancient Egyptian art where the Nile was deified, or in Chinese landscape paintings where rivers embody the concept of 'Shanshui' – the interplay between mountains and water, representing harmony and balance. The river's origin, depicted here, evokes a sense of new beginnings. Rivers, much like the cyclical nature of life itself, may symbolize how cultural and artistic motifs are not linear but circular, constantly resurfacing and evolving.