Guardarrama, Segovia 

Muirhead Bone’s watercolor artwork captures the stark beauty of Guardarrama, Segovia. At first glance, the snowy mountains evoke a sense of awe, but look closer at the crosses scattered across the landscape. The cross, a symbol with roots stretching back into the pre-Christian era, has been used to mark sacred sites. In Christianity, it represents sacrifice, redemption, and a bridge between the earthly and divine. In Bone's depiction, it is both a marker of faith and of the passage of time. Consider the Isenheim Altarpiece by Grünewald, where the cross is a brutal emblem of suffering. Here, in contrast, the crosses blend with the serene landscape, softened by time and distance, yet each still silently testifies to the profound human experiences and the collective memory. The mountains preside over the scene, timeless and serene, but the crosses are a powerful symbol engaging viewers on a deep, subconscious level. The meaning has evolved, resurfaced, and taken on new meanings in different historical contexts.