Four Rivers Fountain

Roma, Piazza Navona

 
  • Artist: Gian Lorenzo Bernini
  • Location: Roma, Piazza Navona
  • Date: 1648 - 1651
  • Address: Piazza navona
 
DESCRIZIONE:
The urban setting of this fountain, which is the work of Gian Lorenzo Bernini, consists of a space – that of Piazza Navona – which has evolved through numerous different interventions. These have been superimposed and integrated through the ages and this has left historical traces which are still visible in the architecture which surrounds the piazza. The ancient stadium of Domitian (which was built between 81 and 86 A.D.) is still clearly visible in the formal and dimensional setting of the modern square.The fountain, which was commissioned by Pope Innocent X Pamphili (1644-1655), plays a central role in the urban building plan of the Pope, who saw Piazza Navona as the most representative place in the city for the glorification of his Pontificate. Infact the piazza was subject to an impressive restructuring campaign that included the construction of Palazzo Pamphili as well as the Church of Saint Agnes in Agony. From the earliest years of his Pontificate, Innocent X, had planned to built the most majestic monumental fountain in all Rome in the centre of this piazza (in the place of the horse trough which stood there at the time) and the first work that was commissioned is recorded in a papal commission dated the 11th of April 1647 in which the Pope decrees that the water from the Vergine aqueduct should be brought to Piazza Navona before it reached the Trevi Fountain and that Francesco Borromini should be the architect charged with the execution of the work. However Gian Lorenzo Bernini replaced Borromini in 1648 after he presented the Pope with a silver model of his project for the fountain which was immediately approved. The artist then carried out a number of different designs and models, some of which are still conserved, and when he actually began the construction of the monument he used, for the execution of the project, his trusted team of assistants, which was comprised of sculptors and stonemasons working under his direct control.The elements in travertine, which were completely carved in situ, were entirely done by a group of masons headed by Giovanni Maria Fracchi: though some sources suggest that Bernini himself personally finished some parts of the rocks where there are animals and vegetation. The impromptu way in which Bernini worked is well known: indeed often the result is the fruit of this combination of ideas and planning that are embodied in his work through his complete mastery of building and carving techniques. The statues of the Rivers are carved in marble: the Nile (by Giacomo Antonio Fancelli), the Ganges (by Claude Poussin), the Danube (by Antonio Raggi), the River Plate (by Francesco Baratta) and the Papal Coats of Arms were all carved in studio, and subsequently assembled and positioned on the rocky background that makes up the base for an Egyptian Obelisk carved out of granite that was crowned with a bronzed dove, the symbol not only of peace, but also of the Pamphili family.The five pieces of the obelisk had been found lying in the Circus of Maxentius and were transferred to Piazza Navona, recomposed and erected on the rocks in 1649. The iconography of the fountain, which is complex and has been interpreted in many different ways, predominately regards the global domination of the Papacy, which is represented by the four great rivers that cross the continents that were known at the time (Europe, America, Africa and Asia). On the 12th of June 1651 the fountain was inaugurated to the great excitement and wonder of the patron and other observers, as is reported by the chronicles of the day and the accounts of travellers.
COMMENTI

LE OPERE

Elefantino della Minerva (Pulcino della Minerva) Elefantino della Minerva (Pulcino della Minerva) Gruppo scultoreo Fontana dei Fiumi Fontana dei Fiumi Affresco Busto di papa Gregorio XV Ludovisi Busto di papa Gregorio XV Ludovisi 1622 | Bronzo | 75 x 69 cm. Apollo e Dafne Apollo e Dafne 1622 | Statua Beata Ludovica Albertoni Beata Ludovica Albertoni 1670 | Statua Fontana del Moro Fontana del Moro 1574 | Affresco Fontana del Tritone Fontana del Tritone 1642 | Affresco Fontana delle Api Fontana delle Api 1644 | Affresco Fontana del Leone Fontana del Leone Affresco Santa Maria Maddalena Santa Maria Maddalena 1663 | Statua Baldacchino Baldacchino 1624 | Opera architettonica Monumento Funebre di Urbano VIII Barberini Monumento Funebre di Urbano VIII Barberini 1628 | Sepolcro Abacuc e l'Angelo Abacuc e l'Angelo 1656 | Gruppo scultoreo Estasi Santa Teresa Estasi Santa Teresa 1647 | Gruppo scultoreo Estasi Ludovica Albertoni Estasi Ludovica Albertoni 1671 | Gruppo scultoreo Bozzetti per la Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi Bozzetti per la Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi 1648 | Statua Busto di Costanza Bonarelli Busto di Costanza Bonarelli 1636 | Statua | 72 x 0 cm. Martirio di San Lorenzo Martirio di San Lorenzo 1616 | Statua | 66 x 108 cm. Busto del Cardinale Richelieu Busto del Cardinale Richelieu 1640 | Busto | 80 x 0 cm. San Sebastiano San Sebastiano 1617 | Gruppo scultoreo Ratto di Proserpina Ratto di Proserpina 1621 | Gruppo scultoreo | 109 x 255 cm. Capra Amaltea Capra Amaltea 1615 | Gruppo scultoreo Scala Regia in Vaticano Scala Regia in Vaticano Bassorilievo marmoreo Santa Bibiana Santa Bibiana 1626 | Statua Altare del Santuario di N.S. della Misericordia Altare del Santuario di N.S. della Misericordia Olio su tela Costantino Costantino 1669 | Statua David David 1623 | Statua Baldacchino di San Pietro Baldacchino di San Pietro Olio su parete Enea, Anchise e Ascanio Enea, Anchise e Ascanio 1618 | Gruppo scultoreo Monumento sepolcrale di Urbano VIII Monumento sepolcrale di Urbano VIII 1628 | Statua La verità svelata dal Tempo La verità svelata dal Tempo 1645 | Statua Sepolcro di Alessandro VII Sepolcro di Alessandro VII 1672 | Sepolcro Cattedra Lignea di San Pietro Cattedra Lignea di San Pietro 1666 | Cattedra Lignea Elefante Obeliscoforo Elefante Obeliscoforo 1665 | Statua Anima Dannata Anima Dannata 1619 | Busto Cappella Cornaro Cappella Cornaro 1644 | China acquarellata su carta foderata Anima Beata Anima Beata 1619 | Busto Altare del Santissimo Sacramento Altare del Santissimo Sacramento Olio su tela San Longino San Longino 1628 | Statua San Lorenzo sulla graticola San Lorenzo sulla graticola 1614 | Statua Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi 1648 | Affresco | 30 x 0 cm. Angelo con la Corona di Spine Angelo con la Corona di Spine 1667 | Statua Busto di Antonio Cepparelli Busto di Antonio Cepparelli 1622 | Busto Busto di Antonio Coppola Busto di Antonio Coppola 1612 | Busto San Girolamo San Girolamo 1663 | Statua Busto di Scipione Borghese Busto di Scipione Borghese 1631 | Busto Busto di Francesco I d'Este Busto di Francesco I d'Este 1638 | Olio su tela Busti di Innocenzo X Busti di Innocenzo X Busto Busto di Paolo V Busto di Paolo V 1617 | Busto Busto di Gabriele Fonseca Busto di Gabriele Fonseca 1675 | Busto Busto di Alessandro VII Busto di Alessandro VII Busto Cappella Raimondi Cappella Raimondi China acquarellata su carta foderata
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