Ross Fountain
The Ross Fountain is one of Edinburgh's most ornate and beloved Victorian landmarks, standing proudly within the grounds of Princes Street Gardens in the heart of the Scottish capital. Cast from iron and celebrated for its extravagant decorative detail, the fountain represents a high point of nineteenth-century decorative ironwork and serves as a striking focal point in what is already one of Britain's most dramatically beautiful public parks. Visitors come from around the world to admire it, and it holds a special place in the affections of Edinburgh's residents, who have fought hard over the years to preserve it. Its setting, framed by the volcanic rock of Edinburgh Castle rising above and the elegant Georgian terraces of Princes Street to the north, makes it one of the most photographed objects in the city.
The fountain was created by French sculptor Antoine Durenne and exhibited at the Great Exhibition in Paris in 1862, where it attracted considerable attention for the virtuosity of its casting and the sensuous confidence of its design. It was purchased at the exhibition by Edinburgh gunmaker Daniel Ross, who donated it to the city in 1869, giving it his name. Its arrival in Edinburgh was not without controversy: a petition signed by many citizens, particularly from the Free Church of Scotland, objected to the semi-nude female figures adorning the fountain, calling them indecent and inappropriate for a public space. Despite the protests, the fountain was installed in West Princes Street Gardens and has remained there ever since, a quietly subversive monument to Victorian passion in the middle of the respectable New Town.
Physically, the fountain is a tour de force of cast ironwork. It rises in several tiers, with the lower basin ringed by large figures of mythological women — voluptuous, confident forms holding shells and aquatic creatures — while above them sit sea nymphs and creatures of myth. At the very top, a globe is surmounted by a graceful female figure. The ironwork is painted in a palette of deep greens, creams, and golds, which sets it off beautifully against the green lawns of the gardens and the grey Scottish sky. When the water flows, it splashes and cascades through the multiple tiers in a way that is both visually enchanting and audibly soothing, a rare pocket of gentle noise in a city full of more strident sounds.
The fountain underwent a major and long-overdue restoration that was completed in 2018, following decades during which it had stood dry and deteriorating. The restoration project was extensive, involving specialist conservation metalworkers who repaired and repainted the intricate ironwork, restored the water circulation system, and renewed the surrounding paving and planting. The cost ran to several million pounds and was funded through a combination of public and private sources. The result was remarkable: the fountain was returned to full working order and looks today as impressive as it must have done when first installed, its colours vivid and the water once again dancing through the tiers as the sculptor intended.
Princes Street Gardens themselves are among the most extraordinary public parks in any European capital. Occupying the drained bed of Nor Loch — the medieval loch that once served as both water supply and dumping ground for the Old Town — the gardens sit in a steep valley directly beneath Edinburgh Castle, which looms on its basalt crag in a way that can seem almost theatrical in its drama. To the north runs Princes Street, one of Scotland's busiest shopping streets, and to the south the rocky escarpment climbs steeply toward the Old Town's medieval spine. The gardens also contain the Scottish American War Memorial, the Ross Bandstand, the Floral Clock, and numerous other monuments, making a walk through them feel like a journey through layers of Edinburgh's history.
Getting to the fountain is extremely easy. Princes Street is served by numerous bus routes, and Edinburgh Waverley railway station is only a few minutes' walk away. The gardens are entered from several points along Princes Street or from the Mound, and the fountain sits in the western half of the gardens, sometimes called West Princes Street Gardens. The gardens are open year-round during daylight hours and admission is free. The fountain area is paved and reasonably accessible, though parts of the surrounding garden paths can be uneven. Spring and summer are the most pleasant times to visit, when the gardens are in full colour and the fountain is in operation, but the castle backdrop is dramatic in all seasons, and the fountain's ironwork has its own austere beauty even on a grey winter afternoon.
One fascinating footnote concerns the long gap between the fountain's acquisition and its restoration. For many decades from the late twentieth century it stood non-operational and visibly deteriorating, and it became something of a cause célèbre for preservationists. The battle to restore it drew attention to broader questions about how cities care for their decorative and industrial heritage, and the completion of the project in time for the city's tourist season was widely celebrated. It is also worth noting that the original controversy over the nude figures was never entirely forgotten: Edinburgh's capacity for Presbyterian prudishness and its simultaneous love of bold public art have always existed in productive tension, and the Ross Fountain sits at that intersection with a certain serene amusement.