The Donner Fountain, Vienna was designed by Georg Raphael and today it is one of the major attractions in Vienna. It is located right in the middle of the Neuer Markt within the precincts of the Hofburg Quarter. The four figures in the Donner Fountain, Vienna denotes the tributaries of the Danube. The figure that is there in the center represents Providence.
The history of the Donner Fountain, Vienna
The Donner Fountain, Vienna was built in 1737-39 by Georg Raphael Donner. He was commissioned by the authorities to construct this particular Providentia Fountain. It was this Providentia Fountain which is now popularly known in Vienna as the Donner Fountain. The main aim of the city fathers was that they wanted the central figure of Providentia in the fountain to reflect the way in which the government cared for all the citizens and how wise the authorities were.
The figurines
The Donner Fountain, Vienna has a plinth that is decorated with four elegant naked cherubs. There is a particular meaning that is associated with the Donner Fountain, Vienna. The figures that are there on the edge of the fountain's basin stand for a Traun (a youth), Rivers Enns (an old man) and Ybbs and March which stand for both male and female forms.
Empress Maria Theresa had objected to so much nakedness in the figures and she had them removed. It was in 1801; during the reign of Francis II the figures were replaced.
In 1873 the lead figures has decayed to such a great extent that these had to be replaced and bronze replicas were put. But Donner's originals still survive and these have been put in the Baroque Museum at the Belvedere Palaces. This too attracts a number of tourists and has become one of the main sightseeing destinations of Vienna.
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