This bronze fountain, executed by Bartolomeo Ammannati in 1563 for the gardens of the Medici Villa Castello, represents the Apennine mountains, the source of the rivers of Florence. The subject of a chilly old man alludes to the cold reaches of the mountains, but also supports an alternative interpretation of the fountain as a representation of January (Gennaio).
However, because the fountain on which the bronze figure rests is at the highest point of the Villa gardens, and is located at the center of a large reservoir which gravity-feeds the rest of the Villa fountains, the figure’s identity as Appennino makes more sense.
The fountain was once ensconsed in a “sacred wood” (bosco sacro) and the “disk” atop the statue’s head would have showered chilly mountain spring water over the shivering figure.
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