Observations placeholder
Cirlot on fountains
Identifier
004823
Type of Spiritual Experience
Background
A description of the experience
A Dictionary of Symbols – J E Cirlot
There can be no doubt that the fountain's significance as the mystic 'centre' is confirmed and reinforced when it is portrayed in architectural plans; whether in the cloister, the garden or the patio, the fountain occupies the central position, at least in the majority of architectural works built during the periods within the symbolist tradition, as in Romanesque or Gothic edifices.
Furthermore, the four rivers of Paradise are denoted by the four paths which radiate out from the region of the cloister towards a clear space, circular or octagonal in shape, which forms the basin of the fountain; this basin is usually shaped, again, like a circle or an octagon, and sometimes there is a double basin.
The Alhambra in Grenada