Rome - Fountain of the Four Rivers

(Local Name: Fontana dei Fiumi) There are three fountains in the square, the most notable being the Fontana dei Fiumi (1647-51), with which Bernini won the favor of Pope Innocent X. This is a masterly and spirited composition with a large basin from which emerges a rocky crag bearing an obelisk, surrounded by plants and animals. At the four corners are figures personifying the Nile, Ganges, Danube and Rio de la Plata - the rivers then believed to be the largest in the four known continents. Each figure is accompanied by appropriate flora and fauna. According to a traditional Roman joke the Nile has his head veiled because the source of the river was not known, or alternatively - alluding to the bitter rivalry