Bernini's First Masterpieces

Bernini's First Masterpieces Bernini's First Masterpieces 8955152390.jpg

The Barcaccia, Bernini's first fountain, is a magnificent chef d'oeuvre built at the foot of the Trinita dei Monti in Piaza di Spagna. To this day, this spot is flooded with Roman locals and travelers alike who enjoy debate and each other's company. The streets surrounding his water fountain have come to be one of the city’s most stylish meeting places, something which would certainly have pleased Bernini himself. Dating back to around 1630, Pope Urbano VIII commissioned what was to be the very first water fountain of the master's career. An enormous boat slowly sinking into the Mediterranean is the fountain's main theme. The great 16th century flooding of the Tevere, which left the entire region inundated with water, was memorialized by the water fountain according to writings from the time. In what turned out to be his sole extended absence from Italy, Bernini {journeyed | traveled] to France in 1665.

Did You Know How Mechanical Concepts of Water Fountains Became Known?

Did You Know How Mechanical Concepts of Water Fountains Became Known? Throughout the European countries, the primary means of dissiminating useful hydraulic facts and fountain design suggestions were the circulated pamphlets and illustrated books of the time, which contributed to the evolution of scientific innovation. Know Mechanical Concepts Water Fountains Became Known? 47320543914.jpg

Know Mechanical Concepts Water Fountains Became Known? 47320543914.jpg

In the later part of the 1500's, a French water feature designer (whose name has been lost) was the internationally recognized hydraulics innovator. His experience in designing landscapes and grottoes with built-in and ingenious water attributes began in Italy and with commissions in Brussels, London and Germany. In France, near the end of his life, he wrote “The Principle of Moving Forces”, a book that became the fundamental text on hydraulic technology and engineering. The publication updated key hydraulic discoveries since classical antiquity as well as describing modern day hydraulic technologies. Dominant among these works were those of Archimedes, the creator of the water screw, a mechanized method of moving water. Sunlight warmed the liquid in two undetectable containers adjacent to the ornamental fountain were displayed in an illustration. Activating the water fountain is hot water which expands and rises to seal up the conduits. Pumps, water wheels, water attributes and garden pond concepts are documented in the book.

Aqueducts: The Answer to Rome's Water Troubles

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Aqueducts: The Answer to Rome's Water Troubles Prior to 273, when the very first elevated aqueduct, Aqua Anio Vetus, was established in Roma, residents who dwelled on hillsides had to travel even further down to collect their water from natural sources. If citizens residing at higher elevations did not have access to springs or the aqueduct, they’d have to depend on the other existing systems of the day, cisterns that compiled rainwater from the sky and subterranean wells that drew the water from under ground. Starting in the sixteenth century, a unique method was introduced, using Acqua Vergine’s subterranean sectors to deliver water to Pincian Hill. During the length of the aqueduct’s network were pozzi, or manholes, that gave access. Although they were initially manufactured to make it possible to service the aqueduct, Cardinal Marcello Crescenzi began using the manholes to get water from the channel, commencing when he purchased the property in 1543. Even though the cardinal also had a cistern to get rainwater, it didn’t supply enough water. By using an opening to the aqueduct that flowed underneath his property, he was able to reach his water needs.