City fountains in Bratislava are to be activated

As from 5 April, we will be activating the fountains in Bratislava, including the Družba Fountain on Freedom Square, which proved to be exceptionally popular last season. A total of thirty-six fountains will gradually be activated. The thirteen drinking fountains as well as the mist fountain and eight water sprinklers will also provide refreshment to the residents and visitors of Bratislava.

In addition to the Družba Fountain, the Ganymede Fountain on Hviezdoslav Square in front of the Slovak National Theatre, the Woman with a Crook Fountain on Franciscan Square, the Maximilian (Roland's) Fountain on Main Square, the Lion with a Coat of Arms Fountain in front of the Old Market Hall on Main Square, the Lion with a Coat of Arms Fountain in front of the Old Market Hall on the Velvet Revolution Square and the Girl with a Roe Deer fountain on Hviezdoslav Square, among others, will be the first to be made open to the public. Drinking fountains will be activated together with the city fountains.

MARIANUM, the Bratislava Funeral Home, which currently also manages the city's fountains, has taken care of the preparations for their launch. The commissioning was preceded by a number of activities, in particular revisions of the electrical installations, inspections of the connections, pumps, control systems for tightness and leaks of fountain pools and dispensers. The fountain pools were restored, dirt deposits and limescale removed, and surface treatments (protective coatings) were applied.

The fountains in the city not only have an aesthetic function, they are also essential for cooling in the summer months and maintaining a desirable microclimate in their locations. The water that makes up the city's blue infrastructure has a tree-like ability to cool the city, which, together with other solutions implemented by the city, makes a significant contribution to mitigating the impact of the climate crisis. Accordingly, throughout the summer season, the functionality of the control systems, the dosage of pool chemicals, the state of the technical values or the technological equipment will be monitored daily to ensure that they fulfil their purpose smoothly.

Among the city's fountains, there are also a few that remind us of our cultural heritage and are also national cultural monuments. These are the Maximilian, Ganymede, Duck, Palugyay and Red Crayfish fountains. Administrative proceedings for declaration of the Puk Lipy fountain in Ružinov as a National Historical Monument have been initiated.

The origin of these national cultural monuments varies. Maximilian's (Roland's) Fountain, which is the oldest fountain within the territory of Bratislava, was built by order of King Maximilian II after a fire broke out during the games held on the occasion of the royal coronation. It is a Renaissance fountain. Its most recent restoration to its original Renaissance appearance took place in 2019.

The inspiration for the Ganymede Fountain was the ancient myth of Ganymede, who was taken to the home of the gods on Olympus. The Ganymede Fountain became the first public fountain to have a purely decorative function. Since its construction, it has been an integral part of the former City Theatre. The Duck Fountain is in the Neo- Baroque style and its author, a Bratislava sculptor, was inspired by the legend of the water goblin and the boys turned to stone.

Bratislava has more than a hundred and fifty fountains, but many of them are owned by city districts, hotel owners, shopping centres and other legal entities. MARIANUM, the Bratislava Funeral Home, as the administrator of the city fountains, provides maintenance and operation of a total of fifty-five devices – thirty-eight fountains, thirteen drinking fountains, three wells and one mist fountain.

In addition to fountains, MARIANUM, the Bratislava Funeral Home, manages, maintains and operates eighteen cemeteries, the Bratislava Crematorium and two war cemeteries. It manages sixty-four monuments and memorials within the city. It also provides additional services, such as funeral services, the manufacture and sale of wreaths, floral products and sacral objects. MARIANUM maintains digital records of grave, urn and crypt sites, including the graphical representation of burial sites.