10 Most Beautiful Fountains in the World

 

10 Most Beautiful Fountains in the World

Fountains were originally purely functional, connected to springs or aqueducts and used to provide drinking water and water for bathing and washing to the residents of cities, towns and villages. Until the late 19th century most fountains operated by gravity, and needed a source of water higher than the fountain, such as a reservoir or aqueduct, to make the water flow or jet into the air.Fountains make fantastic historical monuments and still inspire us with their beauty and power.

1.    The Dubai Fountain

One of the largest fountains in the world is the Dubai Fountain. It is a spectacular choreographed fountain that is spread across 30 acres of area and stands in front of the Burj Khalifa Lake, in the center of the Downtown Dubai Development. The fountain was designed by WET Design who is well-known for designing some of the best fountains around the world. The fountain is illuminated with the help of 6600 lights and 50 color projectors and it can rise up to 275 meters long and shoots water more than 500 ft in the air. In the background, you can hear contemporary Arabic and world music to which the water of the fountain sways. It was built with a budget of $218 million and is one of the top attractions in the city of Dubai. Location: Fashion Parking – Dubai Mall – Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Blvd – Dubai – United Arab Emirates

2.    Big Wild Goose Pagoda Fountains (Xian, China)

Covering about 110,000 square meters, the music fountain in the North Square of the Big Wild Goose Pagoda is the biggest one in Asia. The Fountain and Music Show has the most benches, the longest light-belt, and the largest-scale acoustic complex in the world.

3.    Fountain of Joy, Kolkata

It was a rather joyless moment for the Calcutta Electric Supply Company when in 1991 its generous gift of a dancing musical fountain close by the Victoria Memorial in the city’s Maidan park was denigrated by critics and denounced by protestors. How dare the power company waste electricity when the Indian city was wracked by power cuts and when so many of its poorest inhabitants had no electricity to light their homes let alone to play with. The fountain was abandoned. But, the urban mood has changed since then, and in 2012 the sashaying fountain was re-opened. With its valves opening and closing 12 times a second, this joyous fountain dances to music, producing wave after wave of eye-boggling effects. (Credit: Slunia/Wikimedia)

4.    Fountain of Apollo, Versailles

The Palace of Versailles occupies 2,000 acres (8 sq km), more than twice the area of Manhattan’s Central Park. But, then, the self-styled ‘Sun King’ was never less than overweeningly ambitious. Louis XIV saw himself as the Apollo of his day, and the finest of the fountains created for the palace gardens when revamped by André Le Nôtre from 1662 was inspired by the idea of the Roman sun god rising from the sea at dawn on his light-bringing ride across the heavens. Designed by Charles Le Brun, this magnificent eye-catcher with its foaming horses, whales and tritons blowing water from wreathed horns, stands at the head of a mile-long canal that makes the palace gardens seem all but infinite. (Credit: Alamy)

5.    Magic Fountain Of Montjuic

If you are in Barcelona, then you should not miss witnessing the Magic Fountain of Montjuic. One of the largest water fountains in the world, this splendid man-made wonder will surely mesmerize you in the most terrific manner. The fountain is located in the neighborhood of Montjuic. It performs amazing light and sound performances year-round which makes it a great destination for travelers in Barcelona to spend their time. The fountain was constructed long back in 1929 but it started to perform light shows in 1980. Location: Plaça de Carles Buïgas, 1, 08038 Barcelona, Spain

6.    Palace of Versailles (Versailles, France)

Inspired by Ovid's Metamorphoses, the Latona fountain illustrates the legend of Apollo's mother and Diana protecting her children against the insults of the peasants of Lycia, and calling on Jupiter to avenge them. He heard their plea and transformed them into frogs and lizards.

7.    Bellagio Fountains (Las Vegas, USA)

The construction of the Bellagio Fountains in Las Vegas cost $40 million, worth every penny (to us visitors). These Fountains are choreographed to various pieces of music and present a light and water show every 15 to 30 minutes. Before the water show begins the nozzles break the water surface and the Bellagio hotel structure changes colors depending on the day, show, holiday or event.

8.    Stravinsky Fountain, Paris

Set between the Flamboyant Gothic 16th-Century church of Saint-Merri and what the playful French sculptor Jean Tinguely described as the “superb monstrosity” of the Pompidou Centre, the Stravinsky Fountain must surely make even the most high-minded art historian smile. One of seven new Parisian fountains commissioned by presidential decree in 1978, Jean Tinguely and Niki de Saint Phalle’s colourful kinetic fountain evokes themes in the works of the Russian-born composer Igor Stravinsky. For Stravinsky and his contemporaries, the circus was a popular theme and this charmingly surreal fountain is suitably clown-like. When it opened in 1983, above Pierre Boulez’s underground music research centre, Le Monde thought it had “the character of a mechanical music box of the 18th Century”. (Credit: Alamy)

9.    The Archibald Fountain

The Archibald Fountain in Sydney is one of the most popular fountains in the continent of Australia. The fountain was finished back in 1932 in order to honor the association of France & Australia during World War I. The design of this fountain was inspired by the classical Greek and Roman history, art and literature. Some of the famous figures that surround the fountain include Apollo and various other mythological characters. Granite and bronze have been used to create this fountain. Location: Hyde Park North, 110 Elizabeth St, Sydney NSW 2000, Australia

10.           The Buckingham Fountain (Chicago, United States)

Buckingham Fountain is a Chicago landmark in the center of Grant Park. Dedicated in 1927, it is one of the largest fountains in the world. Built in a rococo wedding cake style and inspired by the Latona Fountain at the Palace of Versailles, it is meant to allegorically represent Lake Michigan.