Back Story of Landscape Fountains
Back Story of Landscape Fountains Pope Nicholas V, himself a learned man, ruled the Roman Catholic Church from 1397 to 1455 during which time he commissioned many translations of old classic Greek documents into Latin. Beautifying Rome and making it the worthy capital of the Christian world was at the core of his objectives. Beginning in 1453, the ruined ancient Roman aqueduct known as the Aqua Vergine which had brought fresh drinking water into the city from eight miles away, underwent restoration at the behest of the Pope. The ancient Roman custom of building an awe-inspiring commemorative fountain at the point where an aqueduct arrived, also known as a mostra, was resurrected by Nicholas V.
The present-day location of the Trevi Fountain was previously occupied by a wall fountain commissioned by the Pope and constructed by the architect Leon Battista Alberti. The Trevi Fountain as well as the renowned baroque fountains found in the Piazza del Popolo and the Piazza Navona were eventually supplied with water from the altered aqueduct he had rebuilt.
The Origins Of Outdoor Fountains
The Origins Of Outdoor Fountains A fountain, an incredible piece of engineering, not only supplies drinking water as it pours into a basin, it can also launch water high into the air for an extraordinary effect.Originally, fountains only served a practical purpose.
Water fountains were connected to a spring or aqueduct to supply potable water as well as bathing water for cities, townships and villages. Until the late nineteenth, century most water fountains operated using the force of gravity to allow water to flow or jet into the air, therefore, they needed a source of water such as a reservoir or aqueduct located higher than the fountain. Serving as an element of decoration and celebration, fountains also generated clean, fresh drinking water. The main materials used by the Romans to build their fountains were bronze or stone masks, mostly depicting animals or heroes. Throughout the Middle Ages, Muslim and Moorish garden planners included fountains to create smaller variations of the gardens of paradise. The fountains found in the Gardens of Versailles were supposed to show the power over nature held by King Louis XIV of France. To mark the entryway of the restored Roman aqueducts, the Popes of the 17th and 18th centuries commissioned the construction of baroque style fountains in the spot where the aqueducts arrived in the city of Rome
The end of the nineteenth century saw the increase in usage of indoor plumbing to provide drinking water, so urban fountains were relegated to strictly decorative elements. The creation of special water effects and the recycling of water were 2 things made possible by swapping gravity with mechanical pumps.
Modern-day fountains function mostly as decoration for community spaces, to honor individuals or events, and enhance entertainment and recreational gatherings.
Did You Know How Mechanical Designs And Styles of Water Fountains Became Known?
Did You Know How Mechanical Designs And Styles of Water Fountains Became Known?
The published reports and illustrated publications of the day contributed to the development of scientific technology, and were the chief methods of dissiminating practical hydraulic information and water fountain suggestions throughout Europe. In the late 1500's, a French water fountain developer (whose name has been lost) was the internationally renowned hydraulics leader. With Royal mandates in Brussels, London and Germany, he started his work in Italy, building know-how in garden design and grottoes with incorporated and imaginative water features. In France, near the closure of his life, he published “The Principle of Moving Forces”, a publication that became the primary text on hydraulic mechanics and engineering. Describing the latest hydraulic systems, the book also updated critical hydraulic developments of classical antiquity. Archimedes, the developer of the water screw, had his work featured and these integrated a mechanized way to move water. An beautiful spring with sunlight heating up the liquid in two containers hidden in an adjacent area was presented in one illustration. The end result: the fountain is activated by the heated water expanding and rising up the pipelines. Yard ponds as well as pumps, water wheels, and water feature creations are incorporated in the book.