The Beginnings of Contemporary Wall Fountains
The Beginnings of Contemporary Wall Fountains
The translation of hundreds of classical Greek texts into Latin was commissioned by the learned Pope Nicholas V who ruled the Church in Rome from 1397 until 1455. It was important for him to beautify the city of Rome to make it worthy of being called the capital of the Christian world. 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 repair at the behest of the Pope. A mostra, a monumental dedicatory fountain built by ancient Romans to mark the point of arrival of an aqueduct, was a tradition which was restored by Nicholas V. The present-day location of the Trevi Fountain was once occupied by a wall fountain commissioned by the Pope and built by the architect Leon Battista Alberti. The aqueduct he had refurbished included modifications and extensions which eventually allowed it to supply water to the Trevi Fountain as well as the famed baroque fountains in the Piazza del Popolo and the Piazza Navona.
Where did Large Outdoor Fountains Come From?
Where did Large Outdoor Fountains Come From? 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.
Water fountains were connected to a spring or aqueduct to supply potable water as well as bathing water for cities, townships and villages. 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 gravity. Serving as an element of adornment and celebration, fountains also generated clean, fresh drinking water. Bronze or stone masks of wildlife and heroes were frequently seen on Roman fountains. During the Middle Ages, Muslim and Moorish garden designers included fountains in their designs to re-create the gardens of paradise. The fountains seen in the Gardens of Versailles were meant to show the power over nature held by King Louis XIV of France. Seventeen and 18 century Popes sought to laud 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 force of gravity with mechanical pumps.
Nowadays, fountains decorate public areas and are used to pay tribute to individuals or events and fill recreational and entertainment needs.
Rome, Gian Bernini, And Statuary Fountains
Rome, Gian Bernini, And Statuary Fountains In Rome’s city center, there are many famous fountains.
Gian Lorenzo Bernini, one of the finest sculptors and artists of the 17th century planned, conceived and constructed almost all of them. Traces of his life's work are evident throughout the roads of Rome because, in addition to his skills as a water fountain builder, he was also a city builder. A famous Florentine sculptor, Bernini's father mentored his young son, and they ultimately went to Rome to fully express their art, primarily in the form of community water features and water fountains. The young Bernini earned encouragement from Popes and relevant artists alike, and was an diligent employee. At the start he was known for his sculptural abilities. Most famously in the Vatican, he made use of a base of knowledge in classic Greek architecture and melded it effortlessly with Roman marble. Although a variety of artists impacted his artistic endeavors, Michelangelo influenced him the most.
Rome’s Ingenious Water Transport Systems
Rome’s Ingenious Water Transport Systems With the manufacturing of the 1st elevated aqueduct in Rome, the Aqua Anio Vetus in 273 BC, folks who lived on the city’s foothills no longer had to rely entirely on naturally-occurring spring water for their requirements. Outside of these aqueducts and springs, wells and rainwater-collecting cisterns were the sole technological innovations available at the time to supply water to locations of high elevation.
Starting in the sixteenth century, a newer method was introduced, using Acqua Vergine’s subterranean sectors to deliver water to Pincian Hill. As originally constructed, the aqueduct was provided along the length of its channel with pozzi (manholes) constructed at regular intervals. Even though they were originally developed to make it possible to support the aqueduct, Cardinal Marcello Crescenzi began using the manholes to collect water from the channel, starting when he obtained the property in 1543. He didn’t get adequate water from the cistern that he had built on his residential property to obtain rainwater. To give himself with a much more practical means to assemble water, he had one of the manholes opened, providing him access to the aqueduct below his residence.