form, with a columnar structure at the centre, from the lower part of which it was arranged that spouts should issue, playing into an open basin, and supplying vessels brought for the purpose in the cleanest and quickest manner. The columns take very various forms, from that of a simple regular geometrical solid, with only grotesque masks at the spouts, to that of an elaborate and ornate Gothic structure, with figures of virgins, saints and warriors, with mouldings, arches, crockets and finials. At Provins there is a fountain said to be of the 12th century, which is in form an hexagonal vase with a large column in the centre, the capital of which is pierced by three mouths, which are furnished with heads of bronze projecting far enough to cast the water into the basin. In the public market-place at Brunswick is a fountain of the 15th century, of which the central structure is made of bronze. Many fountains are still existing in France and Germany which, though their actual present structure may date no earlier than the 15th or 16th century, have been found on the place of, and perhaps may almost be considered as restorations of, pre-existing fountains. Except in Italy few fountains are of earlier date than the 14th century. Two of that date are at the abbey of Fontaine Daniel, near Mayenne, and another, of granite, is at Limoges. Some of these middle-age fountains are simple, open reservoirs enclosed in structures which, however plain, still carry the charm that belongs to the stone-work of those times. There is one of this kind at Cully, Calvados, walled on three sides, and fed from the spring by two circular openings. Its only ornamentation is a small empty niche with mouldings. At Lincoln is a fountain of the time of Henry VIII., in front of the church of St Mary Wickford. At Durham is one of octangular plan, which bears a statue of Neptune.
The decay of architectural taste in the later centuries is shown by the fountain of Limoges. It is in form a rock representing Mount Parnassus, upon which are carved in relief Apollo, the horse Pegasus, Philosophy and the Nine Muses. At the top Apollo, in the 16th-century costume, plays a harp. Rocks, grass and sheep fill up the scene.
Purely ornamental fountains and jets d’eau are found in or near many large cities, royal palaces and private seats. The celebrated Fontana di Trevi, at Rome, was erected early in the 18th century under Pope Clement XII., and has all the characteristics of decadence. La Fontana Paolina and those in the piazza of St Peter’s are perhaps next in celebrity to that of Trevi, and are certainly in better taste. At Paris the Fontaine des Innocens (the earliest) and those of the Place Royal, of the Champs Elysées and of the Place de la Concorde are the most noticeable. The fountain of the lions and other fountains in the Alhambra palace are, with their surroundings, a very magnificent sight. The largest jets d’eau are those at Versailles, at the Sydenham Crystal Palace and at San Ildefonso.
About the earliest drawing of any drinking fountain in England occurs in Moxon’s Tutor to Astronomie and Geographie (1659); it is “surmounted by a diall, which was made by Mr John Leak, and set upon a composite column at Leadenhall corner, in the majoralty of Sir John Dethick, Knight.” The water springs from the top and base of the column, which stands upon a square pedestal and bears four female figures, one at least of which represents the costume of the period.
In the East the public drinking fountains are a very important institution. In Cairo alone there are three hundred. These “sebeels” are not only to be seen in the cities, but are plentiful in the fields and villages.
The Metropolitan Drinking Fountain Association (1859) has done much to provide facilities in London for both man and beast to get water to drink in the streets. And in the United States liberal provision has also been made by private and public enterprise.
FOUNTAINS ABBEY, one of the most celebrated ecclesiastical
ruins in England. It lies in the sequestered valley of the river
Skell, 3 m. S.W. of the city of Ripon in Yorkshire. The situation
is most beautiful. The little Skell descends from the uplands
of Pateley Moor to the west a clear swift stream, traversing a
valley clothed with woods, conspicuous among which are some
ancient yew trees which may have sheltered the monks who
first sought retreat here. Steep rocky hills enclose the vale.
Mainly on the north side of the stream, in an open glade, rise
the picturesque and extensive ruins, the church with its stately
tower, and the numerous remnants of domestic buildings which
enable the great abbey to be almost completely reconstructed
in the mind. The arrangements are typical of a Cistercian
house (see Abbey). Building began in earnest about 1135,
and was continued steadily until the middle of the 13th century,
after which the only important erection was Abbot Huby’s
tower (c. 1500). The demesne of Studley Royal (marquess of
Ripon) contains the ruins. It is in part laid out in the formal
Dutch style, the work of John Aislabie, lord of the manor in the
early part of the 18th century. Near the abbey is the picturesque
Jacobean mansion of Fountains Hall.
In 1132 the prior and twelve monks of St Mary’s abbey, York, being dissatisfied with the easy life they were living, left the monastery and with the assistance of Thurstan, archbishop of York, founded a house in the valley of the Skell, where they adopted the Cistercian rule. While building their monastery the monks are said to have lived at first under an elm and then under seven yew trees called the Seven Sisters. Two years later they were joined by Hugh, dean of St Peter’s, York, who brought with him a large sum of money and a valuable collection of books. His example was followed by Serlo, a monk of St Mary’s abbey, York, and by Tosti, a canon of York, and others. Henry I. and succeeding sovereigns granted them many privileges. During the reign of Edward I. the monks appear to have again suffered from poverty, partly no doubt owing to the invasion of the Scots, but partly also through their own “misconduct and extravagance.” On account of this Edward I. in 1291 appointed John de Berwick custodian of the abbey so that he might pay their debts from the issues of their estates, allowing them enough for their maintenance, and Edward II. in 1319 granted them exemption from taxes. After the Dissolution Henry VIII. sold the manor and site of the monastery to Sir Richard Gresham, and from him after passing through several families it came to the marquess of Ripon.
See Victoria County History, Yorkshire; Dugdale, Monasticon; Surtees Society, Memorials of the Abbey of St Mary of Fountains, collected and edited by J. R. Walbran (1863–78).
FOUQUÉ, FERDINAND ANDRÉ (1828–1904), French geologist
and petrologist, was born at Mortain, dept. of La Manche, on
the 21st of June 1828. At the age of twenty-one he entered the
École Normale in Paris, and from 1853 to 1858 he held the appointment
of keeper of the scientific collections. In 1877 he
became professor of natural history at the Collège de France,
in Paris, and in 1881 he was elected a member of the Academy
of Sciences. As a stratigraphical geologist he rendered much
assistance on the Geological Survey of France, but in the course
of time he gave his special attention to the study of volcanic
phenomena and earthquakes, to minerals and rocks; and he was
the first to introduce modern petrographical methods into France.
His studies of the eruptive rocks of Corsica, Santorin and elsewhere;
his researches on the artificial reproduction of eruptive
rocks, and his treatise on the optical characters of felspars
deserve special mention; but he was perhaps best known for
the joint work which he carried on with his friend Michel Lévy.
He died on the 7th of March 1904. His chief publications
were: Santorin et ses éruptions, 1879; (with A. Michel Lévy)
Minéralogie micrographique, Roches éruptives françaises (2 vols.,
1879); and Synthèse des minéraux et des roches (1882).
FOUQUÉ, FRIEDRICH HEINRICH KARL DE LA MOTTE,
Baron (1777–1843), German writer of the romantic movement,
was born on the 12th of February 1777 at Brandenburg. His
grandfather had been one of Frederick the Great’s generals
and his father was a Prussian officer. Although not originally
intended for a military career, Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué
ultimately gave up his university studies at Halle to join the
army, and he took part in the Rhine campaign of 1794. The rest
of his life was devoted mainly to literary pursuits. Like so many
of the younger romanticists, Fouqué owed his introduction to
