Contemporary Garden Decor: Garden Fountains and their Beginnings

From the onset, outdoor fountains were simply there to serve as functional elements. People in cities, towns and villages received their drinking water, as well as water to bathe and wash, via aqueducts or springs in the vicinity. 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 move down or shoot high into the air. Acting as an element of adornment and celebration, fountains also generated clean, fresh drinking water. Bronze or stone masks of animals and heroes were commonly seen on Roman fountains. During the Middle Ages, Muslim and Moorish garden planners included fountains to create mini depictions of the gardens of paradise. Fountains played a considerable role in the Gardens of Versailles, all part of French King Louis XIV’s desire to exert his power over nature. 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 arrived in the city of Rome
The end of the 19th century saw the rise in usage of indoor plumbing to supply drinking water, so urban fountains were relegated to purely decorative elements. Fountains using mechanical pumps instead of gravity helped fountains to bring recycled water into living spaces as well as create unique water effects.
Decorating city parks, honoring people or events and entertaining, are some of the uses of modern-day fountains.
The Influence of the Norman Conquest on Anglo-Saxon Landscaping
The Influence of the Norman Conquest on Anglo-Saxon Landscaping Anglo-Saxons experienced extraordinary modifications to their day-to-day lives in the latter half of the eleventh century due to the accession of the Normans.
Water Features: The Minoan Society
Water Features: The Minoan Society Various types of conduits have been unveiled through archaeological digs on the isle of Crete, the cradle of Minoan civilization. They were used for water supply as well as removal of storm water and wastewater. The main ingredients employed were rock or terracotta. There were terracotta conduits, both round and rectangular as well as waterways made from the same material. The cone-like and U-shaped terracotta pipes that were uncovered have not been seen in any other society. Knossos Palace had an advanced plumbing system made of clay conduits which ran up to three meters under ground.