Water Fountains: The Minoan Culture
Water Fountains: The Minoan Culture Various different kinds of conduits have been found through archaeological excavations on the isle of Crete, the birthplace of Minoan civilization. These were utilized to supply cities with water as well as to reduce flooding and remove waste material.
The chief ingredients used were stone or terracotta. Whenever terracotta was employed, it was usually for waterways as well as conduits which came in rectangular or circular patterns. These consisted of cone-like and U-shaped clay conduits which were exclusive to the Minoans. Clay pipelines were employed to circulate water at Knossos Palace, running up to three meters beneath the flooring. The pipes also had other functions including gathering water and diverting it to a central place for storage. This called for the clay piping to be capable of holding water without leaking. Underground Water Transportation: Initially this technique would seem to have been designed not quite for ease but to offer water to chosen people or rituals without it being spotted. Quality Water Transportation: Given the data, several historians suggest that these conduits were not connected to the popular water distribution process, providing the palace with water from a various source.
Contemporary Garden Decoration: Garden Fountains and their Beginnings
Contemporary Garden Decoration: Garden Fountains and their Beginnings A water fountain is an architectural piece that pours water into a basin or jets it high into the air in order to provide drinkable water, as well as for decorative purposes.Originally, fountains only served a functional purpose. Inhabitants of cities, 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. Used until the nineteenth century, in order for fountains to flow or shoot up into the air, their source of water such as reservoirs or aqueducts, had to be higher than the water fountain in order to benefit from the power of gravity. Acting as an element of decoration and celebration, fountains also provided clean, fresh drinking water. Roman fountains often depicted imagery of animals or heroes made of bronze or stone masks.
During the Middle Ages, Muslim and Moorish garden planners incorporated fountains to create smaller variations of the gardens of paradise. To show his prominence over nature, French King Louis XIV included fountains in the Garden of Versailles. The Romans of the 17th and 18th centuries manufactured baroque decorative fountains to exalt the Popes who commissioned them as well as to mark the location 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 ornamental. Impressive water effects and recycled water were made possible by switching the power of gravity with mechanical pumps.
These days, fountains decorate public areas and are used to recognize individuals or events and fill recreational and entertainment needs.
The City Of Rome, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, And Outdoor Water Fountains
The City Of Rome, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, And Outdoor Water Fountains In Rome’s city center, there are countless easily recognized fountains. Gian Lorenzo Bernini, one of the most brilliant sculptors and artists of the 17th century planned, conceived and constructed virtually all of them. Also a city architect, he had capabilities as a fountain designer, and marks of his life's work are apparent throughout the roads of Rome. Bernini's father, a recognized Florentine sculptor, mentored his young son, and they ultimately settled in Rome, to fully exhibit their artwork in the form of public water fountains and water features. The young Bernini was an great employee and attained encouragement and patronage of important painters as well as popes.
His sculpture was initially his claim to popularity. An authority in classic Greek architecture, he used this knowledge as a foundation and melded it gracefully with Roman marble, most famously in the Vatican. Although many artists had an impact on his work, Michelangelo had the most profound effect.