Thursday, December 01, 2005

Wallace Fountains, at last!


I don't know if you remember this post about Morris columns but it triggered a lot of comments about another usual object in the Paris scenery : the Wallace Fountains (Les Fontaines Wallace). Named after Sir Richard Wallace - a very wealthy Anglo-French philanthropist who used part of his money to improve the life of Parisians - there are still 108 of these still up and running fountains throughout Paris (the first one was installed in 1875). I took this shot at the bottom of the Champs Elysées and here you can have a more global view of it.


More blogs about paris photos.

18 comments:

  1. Elle ne serait pas un peu surex, cette photo ? Just kiddin' ;)

    BTW, all Wallace Fountains I've seen were dry. I wonder if some of those 100+ still work...

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  2. j'adore cette photo!... et les fontaines Wallace ... et les colonnes Morris... Bravo!

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  3. Oh, you mean these things?!!! Honestly, I had no idea what you guys were talking about when you first mentioned them. Oooops. Gorgeous pictures, thank you.

    By the way, Seattle, are you still there? :-)

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  4. I saw th fountain, but never knew the name, until now. Thanks a lot.

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  5. Nice photo Eric. Yes FredB, I've seen many that still work (Place St. Sulpice for example) and people still use them to drink from and was their hands.

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  6. There is another typically French open air item that is presently under way of total extinction: the public urinal.
    Most of them were located behind churches.
    Eric, could you try to spot for us one of these relics of our glorious past? (a picture of a "Decaux Sanisette" will not be considered as valid).

    My apologies to those who will find that this comment is inappropriate on such a brilliant blog. But this is also a slice of French history!

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  7. One additional comment.
    The correct French word for "public urinal" is "urinoir", more commonly called "pissotière" (I love this word!) or the classier "vespasienne", a term coming from the Roman emperor who introduced them in the antique city of Rome.

    My renewed apologies, etc. etc.

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  8. FX - What is a "Decaus Sasinette"?

    Great Pic, Eric. I had no idea what a Fontaine Wallace was before I saw this photo.

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  9. Elisabeth:
    A "Sanisette" is a public toilet, with a "admission fee" (typically 0.20-0.40 €).
    They were introduced in France by Decaux, an advertizing company that handles "urban furniture" ("mobilier urbain"), such as bus stops and street advertizing billboards.
    They automatically -- and thoroughly -- self-clean after each use, which makes them quite safe and sanitary.
    For a "nice" picture, go check:
    http://www.insecula.com/oeuvre/photo_O0012291.html.

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  10. "Colonnes Morris" lead to "fontaines Wallace". Which lead to urinals. I wonder what's next when Eric publishes a nice picture of a "pissotière" ;-)

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  11. Fredb: that's a great idea, seriously. Do they still have them around, these dark green-looking things they had all over Paris back in the 60's and 70's or are they all modern nowadays?

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  12. I imagine the students referred to in the post below at the Chrysalis School in Seattle, Washington will enjoy reading Eric's post today! I bet the instructor hadn't planned on discussing this subject in class!

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  13. Urinals & Napoleon, nice bits of french culture 8-)

    Michael: nice to know some fountains are still active!

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  14. Michael, I bet the students go to the bathroom, too. ;-)

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  15. Eric- beautiful photos and wonderful blog. did you know that we have our own (working) wallace fountain in los angeles, near UCLA campus? I walk past it each day- just realized that I had seen the same a few weeks ago in Paris. A pleasant surprise to learn that we share something so small and graceful with your lovely city!

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  16. >Kauser. No! I could not even imagine there would be a Wallace Fountain in LA?! Thanks for letting us know. If ever you have the chance to take a photo of it and send it to me (blog (at) tenin.com) I will add it somewhere on this post. If you do, please try to include the surrounding so that everyone can see it's in the "new world"!

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  17. Eric - I'd be happy to. I'm afraid the "new world" surroundings are none too lovely, however.

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  18. Dommage que la photo soit un peu surexposé effectivement :(

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