Gezicht op de kerk van Zoutelande 1792

Jan Bulthuis rendered this drawing of the church of Zoutelande with pen and gray ink in 1792. Look closely at the church—its steeple reaches towards the heavens, a beacon that has, for centuries, symbolized the connection between the earthly and the divine. The spire is an architectural embodiment of the "axis mundi," a motif that pierces through cultures, from ancient obelisks in Egypt to the minarets of Islamic mosques. This pointed form, an arrow aimed at the sky, echoes the human aspiration to transcend the material world. Consider its presence, not just here, but as a recurring image across epochs; each time it reappears, it carries the echoes of past hopes and fears. The steeple is not just a structure, but an emotional compass, directing our gaze—and our souls—upward. This symbolic, vertical thrust taps into our collective memory, an almost primal urge to reach beyond our mortal limits.