The Fountains

The Fountains As initially conceived, water fountains were designed to be practical, guiding water from streams or aqueducts to the residents of cities and villages, where the water could be utilized for cooking, washing, and drinking. The force of gravity was the power supply of water fountains up until the conclusion of the nineteenth century, using the potent power of water traveling downhill from a spring or creek to force the water through spigots or other outlets. Typically used as monuments and commemorative edifices, water fountains have impressed men and women from all over the world throughout the centuries. Rough in style, the very first water fountains did not look much like modern-day fountains. A natural stone basin, crafted from rock, was the first fountain, utilized for holding water for drinking and religious functions. Rock basins as fountains have been found from 2,000 B.C.. The earliest civilizations that utilized fountains relied on gravity to push water through spigots. Drinking water was delivered by public fountains, long before fountains became elaborate public statues, as striking as they are practical. Fountains with ornate decoration began to show up in Rome in about 6 BC, commonly gods and wildlife, made with stone or bronze. The City of Rome had an elaborate system of aqueducts that supplied the water for the many fountains that were located throughout the city.

"Primitive" Greek Art: Large Statuary

"Primitive" Greek Art: Large Statuary Up right up until the Archaic Greeks provided the very first freestanding statuary, a remarkable success, carvings had chiefly been done in walls and pillars as reliefs. Most of the freestanding statues were of youthful, winsome male or female (kore) Greeks and are referred to as kouros figures. The kouroi were seen by the Greeks to typify beauty and were sculpted with one foot leading and an uncompromising rigidity to their forward-facing poses; the male statues were always strapping, sinewy, and naked. In 650 BC, life-size models of the kouroi began to be seen. The Archaic period was an extraordinary point of change for the Greeks as they grew into new modes of government, formed unique expressions of art, and achieved information of the people and cultures outside of Greece. The Arcadian wars, the Spartan invasion of Samos, and other wars between city-states are good examples of the kinds of clashes that occurred frequently, which is consistent with other times of historical transformation.