A Chronicle of Outdoor Fountains
A Chronicle of Outdoor Fountains The translation of hundreds of classic Greek documents into Latin was commissioned by the learned Pope Nicholas V who ruled the Church in Rome from 1397 until 1455. Embellishing Rome and making it the worthy capital of the Christian world was at the core of his objectives. Restoration of the Acqua Vergine, a desolate Roman aqueduct which had transported clean drinking water into the city from eight miles away, began in 1453 at the bidding of the Pope. The ancient Roman tradition of building an imposing commemorative fountain at the location where an aqueduct arrived, also known as a mostra, was resurrected by Nicholas V.
At the behest of the Pope, architect Leon Battista Alberti began the construction of a wall fountain in the place where we now find the Trevi Fountain. Adjustments and extensions, included in the repaired aqueduct, eventually supplied the Trevi Fountain and the well-known baroque fountains in the Piazza del Popolo and Piazza Navona with the necessary water supply.
Modern Garden Decor: Outdoor Fountains and their Roots
Modern Garden Decor: Outdoor Fountains and their Roots A fountain, an amazing 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.The main purpose of a fountain was originally strictly practical. Cities, towns and villages made use of nearby aqueducts or springs to supply them with potable water as well as water where they could bathe or wash. Up until the 19th century, fountains had to be higher and closer to a water supply, such as aqueducts and reservoirs, in order to benefit from gravity which fed the fountains. Fountains were an excellent source of water, and also served to decorate living areas and memorialize the artist. The main materials used by the Romans to build their fountains were bronze or stone masks, mostly depicting animals or heroes. To depict the gardens of paradise, Muslim and Moorish garden planners of the Middle Ages introduced fountains to their designs. The fountains seen in the Gardens of Versailles were meant to show the power over nature held by King Louis XIV of France. The Romans of the 17th and 18th centuries created baroque decorative fountains to glorify the Popes who commissioned them as well as to mark the spot where the restored Roman aqueducts entered the city.
Indoor plumbing became the key source of water by the end of the 19th century thereby restricting urban fountains to mere decorative elements. Fountains using mechanical pumps instead of gravity allowed fountains to provide recycled water into living spaces as well as create special water effects.
These days, fountains decorate public spaces and are used to honor individuals or events and fill recreational and entertainment needs.