Semiotics of Time and its Finger Print in Memento Photographs

memento photographs is the one in which the memory element is more recognizable than any other types of photograph like، snapshot، family photos، personal and domestic ones. In fact the role “memory” is the witness of the time. From the time which camera was invented، its capacity to record the scars of the time made it the popular art among the others. According to the camera’s ability to record the fact، it seems that the photograph will reflect the presence in right time and place. According to the similarity of photo to the content، it is called Iconic Sign and due to the cause and effect relation to the subject، it will be Indexical Sign. Do we accept that recognition of time in memento photographs is a semiotic process، this process based on transactions among codes، inside and outside of the text، make it possible determining of a time range for a person unfamiliar with the context based on his knowledge level. This article use librarian resources documentarily and descriptively and code analysis related time in this article is based on Daniel Chandler code pattern. This is assumption that the audience can construe the time and determine its range in a photo by analysis of the codes and sub codes. According to Chandler، among these codes one of the most important is social code which in turn consists of body، commodity and behavioral codes. Moreover، by studying the body code، those like body touch، proximity، physical mode، appearance، facial gesture، etc، one can make a good understanding of time. Yet، the most influential code in the recognition of time in photos is the textual code which consists of photographical and technical codes. Sometimes، interpretive codes، like the perceptive and the ideological، can be helpful in apprehending the time in memento photos. The interaction of these codes with those which are beyond the text، i. e. those like endorsements، marginal notes، anecdotes of each photo which is told among members of the family، the arrangement of photos in album، and any other paratextual relationship between a photo and other texts may lead to some sort of understanding of the process of understanding time in a photo. Time، like any other affair in shape of metaphor، flows in daily language. So، according to Lakoff contemporary metaphor theory we can conceptualize the time by two metaphors of path and movement. The result of these (code analysis and metaphor) shows that time is passing among the past، now and future. In other words، “time passes” from past to now and future then return to the past. The relation between these photos and fact and reflection shows the time. The more a photo has more obvious cultural and technical code، the easier the recognition of time. The social، cultural and technical knowledge of each reader plays the most important role in finding the time out. So، the time recognition in any photo is possible by the transaction between inside elements and outside and intertextuality of any types of photo like family narrations etc.