Greater fountain in Loreto

Greater fountain in Loreto Photo by Baldassarri Giuseppe © By itravelinitaly.com

Fontana Maggiore, Monuments and historic buildings in Loreto, 60025 Loreto, Province of Ancona, Italy. An elegant example of Baroque art from the first half of the seventeenth century, the Fontana Maggiore of Loreto is located in Piazza della Madonna, overlooking the profile of the Basilica della Santa Casa and that of the Apostolic Palace. The project tells a "family" story, as the structure was designed and created by Carlo Maderno and Giovanni Fontana, who were respectively uncle and nephew; the fountain, in the intentions of the pontiffs and the city authorities, was necessary for the hygiene of the numerous pilgrims, who could quench their thirst there. Machined in marble and bronze, the fountain is composed of several elements: the lower octagonal base, on two levels; the second base, on three levels and lobed; the large square marble basin with lobes; the two tubs and the bronze statues, from which the water, which comes from a long series of underground galleries designed by the same Maderno and Fontana, comes out in a beautiful game of flows.