Contemporary Garden Decoration: Large Outdoor Water Fountains and their Beginnings
Contemporary Garden Decoration: Large Outdoor Water 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 a noteworthy effect.From the beginning, outdoor fountains were soley there to serve as functional elements. Cities, towns and villages made use of nearby aqueducts or springs to supply them with potable water as well as water where they could bathe or wash. Used until the 19th 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. Serving as an element of adornment and celebration, fountains also provided clean, fresh drinking water. Roman fountains usually 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. The fountains seen in the Gardens of Versailles were intended to show the power over nature held by King Louis XIV of France. Seventeen and 18 century Popes sought to extol their positions by adding beautiful baroque-style fountains at the point where restored Roman aqueducts arrived into 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. Amazing water effects and recycled water were made possible by replacing the power of gravity with mechanical pumps.
Decorating city parks, honoring people or events and entertaining, are some of the functions of modern-day fountains.
Decorative Garden Fountains And Their Use In The Minoan Civilization
Decorative Garden Fountains And Their Use In The Minoan Civilization
A variety of different kinds of conduits have been found through archaeological digs on the island of Crete, the birthplace of Minoan civilization. These were applied to furnish cities with water as well as to alleviate flooding and remove waste. Rock and clay were the materials of choice for these conduits. There were clay conduits, both round and rectangle-shaped as well as pathways made from the same elements. There are two good examples of Minoan clay pipes, those with a shortened cone form and a U-shape which have not been seen in any civilization since. Terracotta pipes were employed to circulate water at Knossos Palace, running up to three meters under the flooring. The terracotta water lines were furthermore used for gathering and saving water. In order to make this achievable, the pipelines had to be tailored to handle: Subterranean Water Transportation: It’s not quite known why the Minoans required to transfer water without it being seen. Quality Water Transportation: Given the indicators, several scholars suggest that these water lines were not attached to the prevalent water allocation process, offering the castle with water from a different source.