Fountains in history between utility and decor

A brief focus on the role and importance of urban fountains from ancient times to the present day
Fountains in history between utility and decor

Some urban elements go far beyond their mere function as architectural artifacts. The fountains, in addition to being linked both to public utility and to the representation of the majesty and pride of the (often public) clients, in Italian history are elements that define the country and the historical context that wanted them. The tradition of Italy tells of fountains as a representative form of politics. Whether it is a source dedicated to the supply of water or a real monument, in any case, they are the “voices” through which the political class spoke and showed itself to the citizens in a direct and precise manner.

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Fountains were initially designed to manage water, a precious commodity, and symbol of civilization, they soon became meeting points between the city and its inhabitants, giving a clear meaning to the urban intervention. Already in the past, fountains contributed to creating what is commonly defined as the “good first impression” of a project as a whole: they present themselves as elements that aim at spectacularization, immediately generating a sense of satisfaction, pleasure, and curiosity in the population, all sensations that translate into positive memories.

Since ancient times it has always been believed that fountains revolved around the belief that they represent the common good (Bonum comune), that is the general interest of responding to the practical needs of citizens, through interventions useful for the community, which underlines over time the pride of those who wanted them.

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Cities developed over the centuries a sophisticated system of underground pipes, regardless of the origin of their water resources, to bring water to the various points of the town, thus serving the food, hygiene, and manufacturing needs of the population. During the Roman Empire, from the treatise De aquaeductu urbis Romae by Sesto Julius Frontinus (Roman consul called curator aquarum, or responsible for the aqueducts) it is clear that Rome in  AD 98 it had 9 aqueducts that fed 39 monumental fountains and 591 public basins, but also supplied water to the Imperial family and the owners of private villas. Mainly, all the biggest fountains were connected to two different aqueducts to guarantee a constant water supply if an aqueduct was closed. In addition to the main fountains, there was a well-designed network of small artistic monuments, fountains, troughs, and watering holes, which helped define and redesign the city’s appearance. Nowadays, very few of the existing historical fountains restore their original form to the original site: many have been definitively removed, others have been moved, and still, others moved and revisited, this is because over the centuries cities have had to respond to numerous social, political and urban planning, which made it necessary to renovate or reconvert the places.

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Utility and decor are the two terms with which fountains are most frequently referred. Attilio Bartoli and Sonia Merli in their article An aspect of public commissioning in an urban context: fountains precisely describe these two elements, cornerstones in the history of fountains:

  • utilitas means making a public good available to citizens, water in this case. By making a fountain and declaring it to be made ad utilitatem civitatis, the Municipality states that that water belongs to everyone and no one. It is a common good for civic use and therefore a victory over the set of habits and customs that marked the rights to the waters. The fountain is a visible declaration of advertising and freedom of water withdrawal, previously the exclusive use of private owners of wells and cisterns.
  • decus is the ornamentum of the city, whose objective carefully pursues aesthetics and functionality. The fountain is useful, but it must also be beautiful, to embellish the urban landscape through the attractiveness of the water jets.

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Even today we can find these aspects alive and active. Often in architecture, we talk about utility as the reason for construction and decor as the dignity of behavior and appearance (architect Adolf Loos 1870-1933), so architecture must be understood as a habitus of daily life. Returning to the concept of utilitas, the fountain in the past had to be mainly a source from which to draw water and therefore facilitate man in the supply of water, a practice of primary importance. Nowadays, water services are widespread throughout the territory, so the utility of fountains is linked to sustainability and they are conceived as cooling tools and as a remedy against the heat island effect.

For decades, squares have been put on the back burner to find a solution to living in cities, due to the need to create living spaces for an oversized population. Now the Municipal Administrations have returned to being interested in places of “community”, such as squares and parks, with predominant attention toward the environment, to make urban agglomerations livable and sustainable. To create a regeneration of the urban fabric, parts of the city are redesigned through interventions focused on environmental sustainability, with solutions where greenery reclaims the land and fountains come to the fore, because their jets create a microclimate that lowers the perceived temperature for immediate relief, thus eliminating heat islands.

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In conclusion, fountains have a nature that combines functionality and urban planning. Often unique, the fountains are the tangible result of projects that embellish the urban fabric, which aim to demonstrate their high aesthetic quality, resulting from the work of skilled craftsmen. In the past, the fountains were mainly monumental, now the attractiveness is represented by the dynamism of the jets and therefore by the evolution of the technique in the management and spectacularization of the water. In dealing with public fountains, all the documents now as then are marked by pride, a sort of fil rouge between the past and present, which demonstrates how political commitment aims to create works – useful and proper – in which it is always there is an attractive and catalyzing element, but also a representative symbol of success and prestige: the fountain.

Susanna Dei Rossi

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