Architectural Fountains & Spouts

In the Kathmandu Valley, water has fallen from a stone dragon’s mouth into a public tank for centuries. Architectural fountains and water spouts are carved in marble, stone, brass and iron from India, Nepal and Indonesia. Indian carvers work white marble into lotus-and-fish fountains, lion-mask fountains and layered basins in the old temple vocabulary of water, fertility and abundance; tantric lingam fountains place the emblem of Shiva on a spouted yoni base, where water poured over the lingam runs off through the spout. The Nepalese stone spouts called dhunge dhara are often carved as makara or dragons.

Most are twentieth century or recent, cut by hand in traditional forms. Moving water over carved stone gives a garden room or courtyard sound and movement; a dragon spout on a terrace wall, or a small marble fountain in a bathroom, brings the coolness indoors.