Fountain Builders Through History
Fountain Builders Through History Multi-talented individuals, fountain designers from the 16th to the late 18th century typically served as architects, sculptors, artists, engineers and highly educated scholars all in one person. Leonardo da Vinci, a Renaissance artist, was renowned as a inspired intellect, inventor and scientific master. The forces of nature led him to analyze the properties and movement of water, and due to his curiosity, he systematically captured his observations in his now celebrated notebooks. Innovative water displays packed with symbolic significance and natural beauty converted private villa settings when early Italian water feature creators paired creativity with hydraulic and landscaping abilities.
Did You Know How Mechanical Designs of Water Fountains Became Known?
Did You Know How Mechanical Designs of Water Fountains Became Known?
Modern Garden Decoration: Garden Fountains and their Beginnings
Modern Garden Decoration: Garden Fountains and their Beginnings A fountain, an incredible piece of engineering, not only supplies drinking water as it pours into a basin, it can also propel water high into the air for a noteworthy effect.
From the beginning, outdoor fountains were soley there to serve as functional elements. Inhabitants of urban areas, townships and small towns used them as a source of drinking water and a place to wash, which meant that fountains needed to be linked to nearby aqueduct or spring. Used until the nineteenth century, in order for fountains to flow or shoot up into the air, their origin of water such as reservoirs or aqueducts, had to be higher than the water fountain in order to benefit from gravity. Fountains were not only used as a water source for drinking water, but also to adorn homes and celebrate the artist who created it. Roman fountains often depicted imagery of animals or heroes made of bronze or stone masks. During the Middle Ages, Muslim and Moorish garden designers included fountains in their designs to mimic the gardens of paradise. The fountains seen in the Gardens of Versailles were supposed to show the power over nature held by King Louis XIV of France. To mark the entrance 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 entered the city of Rome
Since indoor plumbing became the standard of the day for fresh, drinking water, by the end of the 19th century urban fountains were no longer needed for this purpose and they became purely decorative. Gravity was replaced by mechanical pumps in order to permit fountains to bring in clean water and allow for beautiful water displays.
These days, fountains decorate public areas and are used to honor individuals or events and fill recreational and entertainment needs.