Anglo-Saxon Gardens at the Time of the Norman Conquest
Anglo-Saxon Gardens at the Time of the Norman Conquest The arrival of the Normans in the second half of the eleventh century irreparably improved The Anglo-Saxon lifestyle. At the time of the conquest, the Normans surpassed the Anglo-Saxons in building design and cultivation. But nevertheless home life, household architecture, and decoration were out of the question until the Normans taken over the entire populace. Castles were more fundamental designs and often constructed on blustery hills, where their people spent both time and space to practicing offense and defense, while monasteries were large stone buildings, commonly positioned in the widest, most fertile hollows. The barren fortresses did not provide for the quiet avocation of farming. The best example of the early Anglo-Norman style of architecture existent presently is Berkeley Castle. It is said that the keep was created during William the Conqueror's time. An enormous terrace encompasses the building, serving as an obstacle to assailants wanting to dig under the castle walls. On one of these parapets is a picturesque bowling green covered in grass and bordered by an aged hedge of yew that has been designed into coarse battlements.A Chronicle of Outdoor Garden Fountains
A Chronicle of Outdoor Garden Fountains Himself a highly educated man, Pope Nicholas V headed the Roman Catholic Church from 1397 till 1455 and was responsible for the translation of scores of ancient texts from their original Greek into Latin. Beautifying Rome and making it the worthy capital of the Christian world was at the center of his objectives.
Beginning in 1453, the ruined ancient Roman aqueduct known as the Aqua Vergine which had brought fresh drinking water into the city from eight miles away, underwent restoration at the bidding of the Pope. Building a mostra, a grandiose commemorative fountain built by ancient Romans to memorialize the entry point of an aqueduct, was a custom revived by Nicholas V. The present-day site of the Trevi Fountain was once occupied by a wall fountain commissioned by the Pope and constructed by the architect Leon Battista Alberti. Changes and extensions, included in the restored aqueduct, eventually supplied the Trevi Fountain and the well-known baroque fountains in the Piazza del Popolo and Piazza Navona with the necessary water supply.
Contemporary Garden Decor: Fountains and their Beginnings
Contemporary Garden Decor: Fountains and their Beginnings A fountain, an amazing piece of engineering, not only supplies drinking water as it pours into a basin, it can also propel water high into the air for an extraordinary effect.The primary purpose of a fountain was originally strictly practical. Residents of urban areas, townships and small towns used them as a source of drinking water and a place to wash, which meant that fountains had to be connected to nearby aqueduct or spring. Until the late 19th, century most water fountains operated using the force of gravity to allow water to flow or jet into the air, therefore, they needed a supply of water such as a reservoir or aqueduct located higher than the fountain. Fountains were not only utilized 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 planners included fountains to create smaller variations of the gardens of paradise. King Louis XIV of France wanted to demonstrate his dominion over nature by including fountains in the Gardens of Versailles. The Romans of the 17th and 18th centuries created baroque decorative fountains to exalt the Popes who commissioned them as well as to mark the spot where the restored Roman aqueducts entered the city.
Since indoor plumbing became the norm of the day for clean, drinking water, by the end of the 19th century urban fountains were no longer needed for this purpose and they became purely decorative. The creation of unique water effects and the recycling of water were two things made possible by replacing gravity with mechanical pumps.
Contemporary fountains are used to adorn community spaces, honor individuals or events, and enhance recreational and entertainment events.