This is a list of fountains, drinking fountains and water wells in Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. Approximately half of the over 140 fountains found in the city form part of the picturesque landscape of the medieval Old Town of Bratislava (the city was known in the past under many names) and serve as tourist attractions while many of the newer fountains are fine examples of socialist era building of modern panelák city suburbs. The number of fountains in Bratislava is comparable to the four times larger neighboring Austrian capital Vienna. Fountains in Bratislava were first built in the 16th century as means of water supply, the oldest fountain in the city is the Roland Fountain from 1572. The first decorative fountain in Bratislava was the Ganymede's Fountain from 1888. The most famous fountain in the city is the Fountain of Love in the borough of Ružinov which was specifically built as the central setting of the 1986 Czechoslovak hit movie Fountain for Suzanne (Slovak: Fontána pre Zuzanu), directed by Slovak director Dušan Rapoš. The fountain features on the movie's iconic poster. Some fountains (such as the Roland Fountain and the Ganymede's fountain) are part of almost every guided tour of the city, while others (such as the fountain Earth - Planet of peace in front of the Presidential Palace) form part of everyday life in Bratislava and are important meeting points in the city. Due to Bratislava being in the temperate zone, outdoor fountains are turned off during the winter months. For the city owned fountains the operating season starts in April - May, and the fountains are not turned on en masse, but gradually starting first with the major fountains in the Old Town. The season typically ends in October.
History Bratislava, due to its location near the river Danube and due to various streams flowing down from the Little Carpathians mountains, always had plenty of water. Fountains were fed water from the streams uphill through a series of wooden pipes, later replaced by metal ones. Since the origin of the stream was higher than the fountain it fed, gravity ejected the water at the end. The pressure was usually very weak and used for example as water flowing from the mouths of animals. During the coronation festivities accompanying the crowning of the Kings of Hungary in the city between 1563 and 1830, wine was usually poured into the town fountains. Originally, the project for the tunnel underneath the Bratislava Castle from the 1940s, today used for public transport trams, contained a fountain to be built into the wall of the eastern portal. When looking inside the tunnel, the fountain was supposed to be inside the wall to the right, but this wall was finally constructed shorter and without the fountain. It was supposed to consist of six small half-circle shaped basins arranged into a triangle, with the water cascading from the upper basins into the lower ones. A new fountain is planned with the reconstruction of the Malokarpatské Námestie in the Lamač borough at least since 2002, but the project is unrealized as of 2012.
Basic description The biggest fountain in Bratislava is Fontána Družby on Námestie Slobody, Old Town. The smallest fountain is Girl with a deer on Hviezdoslavovo námestie, Old Town. As of today, 42 fountains are taken care of by the municipal company Paming - Mestský investor pamiatkovej obnovy, together with 11 small drinking water fountains and 3 water wells, the rest is owned by the Bratislava city boroughs and various private companies and hotels. Annual budget for running and maintenance of the fountains under Paming is approximately 150000 €. Four fountains under Paming were out of order in the 2010 summer season: fountain on Námestie slobody, fountain on Námestie M. Benku, fountain on Uránová Street and fountain on Borská Street. All four would require reconstruction before being able to function again. One fountain, the Fountain for Suzanne in Ružinov, was specially built as the central setting of the 1986 movie of the same name by Slovak director Dušan Rapoš. Fountain for Suzan is still widely known in Slovakia, despite the fountain itself, hidden behind apartment houses, quickly fell into obscurity. Moreover, it was built as a movie prop, without access to public water or electricity. During shooting, the fountain was attached to a cistern truck filled with water. In 2008 the fountain was reconstructed and made functional for the first time. Many of Bratislava's fountains are tourist attractions, some of them feature in most guided tours. Occasionally, people are fined for swimming or skinny-dipping in the fountains, in most cases foreigners. Drinking fountains There are currently 33 public drinking water fountains in Bratislava. They started to appear after the practical aspect of fountains diminished. In the past, the city featured a variety of historical drinking fountains, especially wall-fountains inside the courtyards of rich townspeople mansions. Baroque drinking fountains of this type included Putto s rybou I (Putto with a fish I) and Scharitzerova fontána (Scharitzer drinking fountain) inside the Apponyi Palace, Putto s rybou II on Biela Street survived until today. Drinking fountains are used especially during the summer, yet a lot of people are reluctant to drink the water due to fear of disease. According to the Public Health Office of Slovakia (Slovak: Úrad verejného zdravotníctva), all drinking water fountains supply the same tap water as residents have in their homes and the water is safe to drink. Drinking fountains in Bratislava do not feature any instructions on how to operate them.
List of fountains in Bratislava
The following fountains used to exist in the city in the past:
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