Fountain, Ropner Park, Stockton-on-Tees

Ornamental Fountain, 1893, by Walter Macfarlane and Company of Saracen Foundry, Glasgow.

MATERIALS: cast iron.

DESCRIPTION: a three-tiered spray fountain. The octofoil lower basin is set into a concrete base. The outer rim of the basin has a repeating pattern of passion-flower rosettes separated by scrolled features with a central daisy flower motif. Small projecting pipes feed an outer basin enclosed by a circular concrete wall. A central cylindrical shaft is mounted on a square concrete base at the centre of the lower basin; it is decorated with an ivy-leaf upper frieze and four reliefs of two alternate scenes: one a squirrel on an oak branch holding an acorn and accompanied by a bird and a dragonfly; the other a putto wearing a campanula flower as a hat and sailing a boat crafted from a leaf. Around this shaft are four columns with chamfered and stopped octagonal bases and foliated shafts and capitals. One of the column bases bears in relief, the maker’s name: MACFARLANE'S / GLASGOW. Above is a large circular bowl with a leafy outer rim and bulrush-and-lotus-leaf detail on the underside. Above this, a slender moulded central shaft is surrounded by four herons with outstretched wings that are standing on a base of rushes, lily pads and lily flowers that act as spouts. The base is carried on an octagonal plinth with canted and rippled sides. Daffodil flowers project out over the heads of the herons rising from the central shaft. Atop the central shaft is a smaller ribbed and beaded leafy bowl and seated on a mushroom in the centre of the bowl is a putto, holding aloft a lily pad by its stem that forms a small conical bowl with a water spout within.