FOUNTAIN OF THE BORGO FUORI OR OF THE GHINUCCI

THE HISTORY

Unfortunately, there are no direct documentations of the authorship of the fountain. However, there are abundant sources about the construction of a new aqueduct that was probably of the same time which may refer to the authorship of the fountain. In the 19th century, canon Arcangelo Carones hypothesized in his Memorie Istoriche della Terra di Bagnaia that the fountain’s construction followed that of the aqueduct, giving the authorship to the architect Tommaso Ghinucci, who directed the work. After the opening of a new door to the borgo in 1541, there was a shift of city life to the southside of the Borgo, outside the walls. The new part was amplified thanks to the backing by Card. Raffaele Riario and the architectural interventions were conducted by the architect Tommaso Ghinucci.  In 1553, during this climate of urban revitalization the Municipality of Bagnaia designated, thanks to the will of Balduino del Monte, Tommaso Ghinucci as the designer of the new aqueduct outside the city walls. In the same year, the city council unanimously approved the project. In 1567, work was completed to bring water to the castle gate.  Notary references, where notaries drafted their proceedings, from 1568 say, “in the piazza outside the walls behind the fountain,” lead people to believe that the fountain was already built before that year. In 1581, a water trough for animals was added to the fountain.  In 1588, the cardinal Cornaro knew that “there would be construction of the fountain of Pegasus at the villa, and the water fall of all the fountains of the villa would be funneled into a new pipe and would flow into the fountain outside.” The fountain was definitely finished in the years of Cardinal Gambara, because of the presence of his heraldic coat of arms on the fountain. There are many similar references to his architectural interventions on fountains located in Villa Lante. From this moment on, many problems arose in the community of Bagnaia as a result of wasted water from the many waterfalls and fountains.
Unfortunately, no sources help name, with certainty, the authorship of the work, but in the time of Cardinal Gambara, 16th century, the fountain was on display as a beautiful decoration in the piazza.

DESCRIPTION

The fountain is located in the borgo “outside” of  Bagnaia (VT), in Piazza XX Settembre. It is composed of two rectangular tanks, opposite each other, separated by a truncated gable. The bowl facing the opening of the piazza (the first part to be completed) served as a proper fountain. The part that faces the walls of the borgo (completed in 1581) served as a water trough for animals. Between the two tanks rises a wall, in the shape of a truncated gable, that divides them. It served as nothing more than the end of the fountain. On the south wall are five spouts that spew water. There are also two more on the upper sides. On the top, crown molding closed the wall. The north part – behind the fountain – is completely devoid of decoration except for the coat of arms of Bagnaia with two water spouts. At the two ends of the truncated gable, above the molding, are two large spheres. At the center of the molding, a box houses the grand emblem of the Gambara family, accompanied by two other emblems on the sides. However, these two are not legible because of negligence over time. On the sides of the box, a head of a lion completes the decoration. At the top of the structure is pottery in the shape of a candle.

Translation by Lauren Williamson, Texas A&M University, enrolled in the USAC Viterbo program at the Università degli Studi della Tuscia.

ESSENTIAL BIBLIOGRAPHY

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Fonti
I. CIAMPI, Cronache e statuti della città di Viterbo, Firenze 1872, pp. 417-418;
A. ROSSI, Spogli vaticani, in Giornale di e
rudizione artistica, VI (1877), pp. 204 s.;
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