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Editor: This etching by the British School depicts the Spanish Steps in Rome. I’m struck by how the artist captured the grandeur of the architecture in such detail. What significance do you find in this particular landmark? Curator: The Spanish Steps themselves symbolize a bridging of cultures—the Spanish Embassy to the Holy See and the French church above. But look closer. The obelisk, an Egyptian symbol, crowns the composition. What emotions does the combination of these symbols evoke in you? Editor: It’s interesting how these different cultural symbols come together in one place. The steps lead up to the church. Curator: Precisely. It’s a physical ascent, but also a symbolic one—a journey from the earthly to the divine, mediated by these powerful visual cues. This piece reminds us that images are not passive reflections, but active carriers of memory and meaning. Editor: I never thought about the steps being a connector like that. Thank you. Curator: My pleasure. It has given me a fresh perspective on the iconography of convergence and ascension.