Skitse af Kommandør Købkes hustru Jacobine, født Feilberg 1836 - 1839

Here, Christen Købke sketched his wife Jacobine with pencil on paper. She is sitting with her hand resting on a table, adorned with a ring, gazing directly at the viewer. The ring on Jacobine’s finger serves as a potent symbol, a visual shorthand for marriage, commitment, and the binding ties of family. Across cultures and throughout history, rings have symbolized eternity and unbroken bonds, from ancient Egypt to the present day. Consider the recurrence of the ring motif in Jan van Eyck's "Arnolfini Portrait" – a pledge of marital fidelity, or its appearance in countless other works, each time charged with layers of meaning, promises, and social expectations. These are more than mere adornments; they are symbols that speak to our deepest desires for connection and continuity, evoking a sense of shared human experience that transcends time.