Ingang van de toren van de Grote of Sint-Maartenskerk te Tiel 1893

This photograph captures the entrance to the tower of the Grote of Sint-Maartenskerk in Tiel, immortalized by an anonymous hand. Note the pointed arches above the doors, a hallmark of Gothic architecture, reaching upwards as if aspiring to the heavens. This arch, however, is no isolated phenomenon. It echoes through the ages, from the vaults of medieval cathedrals to the arches of Romanesque basilicas. It is a visual echo chamber. Originally employed to bear the immense weight of stone structures, the pointed arch became a symbol of transcendence, directing the eye – and the soul – upward, towards the divine. Think of the Byzantine mosaics and the Renaissance paintings. But such symbols never remain static. They are fluid, adapting to the currents of time and culture. The arch, once a symbol of religious aspiration, may appear in secular contexts, stripped of its spiritual connotations, yet still carrying the echoes of its sacred past. The pointed arch invites us to consider how symbols persist, transform, and resurface, bearing witness to the ever-evolving relationship between humanity and its visual language.