Bernini's First Masterpieces
Bernini's First Masterpieces One can find Bernini's very first masterpiece, the Barcaccia fountain, at the base of the Trinita dei Monti in Piaza di Spagna. To this day, this area is flooded with Roman locals and tourists alike who enjoy debate and each other's company. One of the city’s most stylish gathering places are the streets surrounding Bernini's fountain, which would certainly have brought a smile to the great Bernini. In around 1630, Pope Urbano VIII helped Bernini start off his career with the construction of his very first fountain. The fountain’s central theme is based on a massive boat slowly sinking into the Mediterranean. The great flooding of the Tevere that blanketed the whole region with water in the 16th was commemorated by this momentous fountain as recorded by documents dating back to this time. In what turned out to be his sole extended absence from Italy, Bernini {journeyed | traveled] to France in 1665.Where did Fountains Originate from?
Where did Fountains Originate from? A water fountain is an architectural piece that pours water into a basin or jets it high into the air in order to provide drinking water, as well as for decorative purposes.Originally, fountains only served a practical purpose. Inhabitants of urban areas, townships and small towns used them as a source of drinking water and a place to wash up, which meant that fountains needed to be linked to nearby aqueduct or spring. Up to the late nineteenth century, water fountains had to be near an aqueduct or reservoir and higher than the fountain so that gravity could make the water flow downwards or shoot high into the air. Fountains were not only utilized as a water source for drinking water, but also to decorate homes and celebrate the designer 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 re-create the gardens of paradise. Fountains enjoyed a considerable role in the Gardens of Versailles, all part of French King Louis XIV’s desire to exercise his power over nature. 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 location where the restored Roman aqueducts entered the city.
Urban fountains created at the end of the 19th century served only as decorative and celebratory adornments since indoor plumbing provided the essential drinking water. Fountains using mechanical pumps instead of gravity helped fountains to deliver recycled water into living spaces as well as create special water effects.
Modern-day fountains serve mostly as decoration for open spaces, to honor individuals or events, and compliment entertainment and recreational activities.