After reading our post on the custom-made bronze nasoni we commissioned from Dante Mortet, our friend, Roman author and journalist Germana Valentini, shared this brief historical reflection on their origins—tracing how a practical urban solution became one of the enduring symbols of everyday life in Rome."There were two main reasons that led Mayor [Luigi] Pianciani to install public drinking fountains. The first was to allow people to freely drink potable water in the streets and squares of the city. The second was to provide an outlet for the water network, which at the time had very high pressure, thereby reducing it and preventing pipes from bursting.
"Between 1872 and 1874, the first twenty “nasoni” were installed. They were made of cast iron, about 120 cm tall, and weighed around 100 kg, though their shape was somewhat different from today’s. Water flowed continuously from three dragon heads placed at the top of a cylindrical structure, and then drained into the sewer system through a grate at street level.
"In the following years, the design of the fountains was modified: the three decorated spouts were replaced by a single smooth pipe, whose shape gave rise to the nickname “nasone” (“big nose”)."
