A Concise History of the First Outdoor Water Features

A Concise History of the First Outdoor Water Features The water from springs and other sources was initially supplied to the inhabitants of nearby communities and cities through water fountains, whose purpose was largely practical, not aesthetic. To make water flow through a fountain until the end of the 1800’s, and create a jet of water, demanded the force of gravity and a water source such as a creek or lake, positioned higher than the fountain. Inspiring and spectacular, prominent water fountains have been crafted as monuments in nearly all societies. When you encounter a fountain today, that is certainly not what the 1st water fountains looked like. The very first accepted water fountain was a rock basin carved that was used as a receptacle for drinking water and ceremonial functions. Rock basins are theorized to have been 1st used around the year 2000 BC. The spraying of water emerging from small jets was forced by gravity, the only power source designers had in those days. The location of the fountains was driven by the water source, which is why you’ll normally find them along reservoirs, canals, or streams. Concise History First Outdoor Water Features 6448038330.jpg

Concise History First Outdoor Water Features 6448038330.jpg

Fountains with flowery decoration started to appear in Rome in about 6 B.C., commonly gods and animals, made with natural stone or bronze. The remarkable aqueducts of Rome delivered water to the spectacular public fountains, most of which you can travel to today.

The History of Garden Fountains

The History of Garden Fountains Pope Nicholas V, himself a well educated man, ruled the Roman Catholic Church from 1397 to 1455 during which time he commissioned many translations of old classic Greek documents into Latin. In order to make Rome deserving of being the capital of the Christian world, the Pope decided to embellish the beauty of the city. In 1453 the Pope commissioned the repairing of the Aqua Vergine, an historic Roman aqueduct which had carried fresh drinking water into the city from eight miles away. The ancient Roman tradition of marking the arrival point of an aqueduct with an magnificent celebratory fountain, also known as a mostra, was restored by Nicholas V. History Garden Fountains 4781677811.jpg

The present-day site of the Trevi Fountain was previously occupied by a wall fountain commissioned by the Pope and constructed by the architect Leon Battista Alberti. The water which eventually supplied the Trevi Fountain as well as the renown baroque fountains in the Piazza del Popolo and Piazza Navona came from the modified aqueduct which he had renovated.