Fontana Pretoria
(Praetorian Fountain)
Palermo
Sicily, Italy
N 38° 06.924 E 013° 21.712
The Fontana Pretoria (Praetorian Fountain) is located in Piazza Pretoria opposite the Palermo City Hall at Via Maqueda near Via Vittorio Emanuele.
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| Olympians |
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This marble fountain was built by Francesco Camilliani in the city of Florence in 1554 for the garden of don Luigi de Toledo. In 1573, Luigi de Toledo sold the fountain to the city of Palermo. It arrived in Palermo in 1574 in 664 pieces and was assembled at its present location in the Piazza Pretoria. The people of Palermo nicknamed it "The Fountain of Shame" because of the many nude statues.
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| Olympians |
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| Olympians |
The Fontana Pretoria contains allegorical figures, mythological figures, animal heads, nymphs, monsters, ornamental staircases and balustrades. It features the Twelve Olympians: Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Ares, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, Hermes, and Dionysus as well as representations of the four rivers of Sicily. The fountain has about fifty figures. All were restored for the fountain's re-opening in January 2004.
The stamp was issued by Italy in 1973 as part of a set of three stamps depicting iconic fountains of Italy.
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