Fontana della Vita a San Marcello

A brief mention of this fountain is made not so much for its particular historical importance (indeed the fountain is a recent creation probably from the first half of the 20th century) but for the diversity that emerges in comparison with all the others in the area, and above all for its characteristic nature that makes it such a pleasant artifact. The fountain [fig. 177] is located along the panoramic avenue that runs above the town of San Marcello, immersed in a grove, but immediately on the edge of the road. It is a large niche with irregular rough stone blocks, outlined by a mighty arch with squared ashlars with a keystone that is a simple rectangular rough stone larger than the others. Inside this sort of "cave" are three small basins of smooth sandstone, leaning against the wall at different heights. The construction is called the "Fountain of Life", so one could read in the three basins the three ages of man, enriched by water, a "vital" element and full of symbolism. But perhaps the structure escapes any cultured interpretation, being rather accompanied by a nice and popular refrain, engraved on a rectangular stone leaning against a boulder to the left of the source, which reads "AT THE SOURCE OF LIFE/ WHOEVER COMES TO IT GETS MARRIED". Locality San Marcello