6The fountains of Rome have been beautiful, decorative and functional icons of the Eternal City for centuries. Painters have immortalized them; poets have rhapsodized over them; and composers have translated into music. From the wish-inspiring Trevi to the humblest drinking fountain, the fountains of Rome are as fascinating as they are varied. And ... there are over 2.000 of them. The poet Shelley said, The fountains of Rome are in themselves magnificent combinations of art such as alone, it were worth coming to see. The fountains of Rome are a curious lot. They are a mixture of many different stone, not only of marble; they are also of wood, metal and other materials. They have been shaped and curved and otherwise formed by greats such as Carlo Maderno, Giacomo della Porta, Domenico Fontana, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Nicola Salvi, Raffaele De Vico and Pietro lombardi., and by unknowns as well. Any intricate history of Rome's various fountains would take many tomes to cover. This is not my work. I present for your pleasure a view of the fountains, with a brief pertinent description where appropriate. Although many dozens of books, each generally titled Le Fontane di Roma, have been written on this subject, none to date has covered in text and photographs together more than several hundred fountains, only a fraction of this book's work. (M. Pulvers).