{"product_id":"four-dolphin-marble-fountain-220cm","title":"Four Dolphin Marble Fountain - 220cm","description":"\u003ch3\u003eDescription\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eFour dolphins rise in a spiralling column of carved water, and two of them spout. The largest arches over the top and three more cross beneath it at descending heights; water jets from the mouths of two. Carved water climbs the column in combed crests, and the basin beneath is left rough outside. The column stands in a rough-hewn rectangular basin with a rounded rim, its outer faces left punched and coarse and its inner bowl dressed smooth to hold water. Basin and column are one piece. White to pale grey marble, grey veining through the animals and the carved water.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eA Basin Is a Different Discipline\u003c\/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eEverything above the rim of this piece is sculpture and everything below it is plumbing, and the two want opposite things from the stone. The animals are carved for shadow: undercut, hollowed, as thin as the marble will bear. The bowl is carved for water: it has to be a continuous unbroken surface with no undercut anywhere, dressed to a fall so that it drains where it is meant to, and worked to a closer tolerance than any decorative surface needs, because a bowl that is out of level shows the error as a waterline. So it is cut as a separate operation with different tools, checked with a level rather than by eye, and finished before the column above it is touched - a wet bowl cannot be re-dressed with a finished fountain standing in it.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis is the one piece in the range that is not simply set down and looked at. It needs a water supply within reach, a power feed for a pump, and somewhere for an overflow to go - so the position has to be chosen with a trench in mind, and that is much easier before paving goes down than after. At 220cm the topmost dolphin goes well overhead and the basin rim sits at the knee. Beyond that it wants what fountains always want: a still setting rather than a windy one, since spray carries; and a position walked round, because all four animals face different ways. We are confirming the pump rating and the pipework arrangement with the carvers and will send those details on request.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eWhat a Fountain Needs That a Statue Does Not\u003c\/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eTwenty-two to twenty-four weeks. Dressing the basin's inner bowl to hold water is a separate discipline from carving the animals. The basin is cut first and separately: the bowl hollowed, dressed to a fall, checked with a level, and its outer faces punched. The column is then roughed standing in it and the four animals set out on the raw mass, since none can be moved later. The column is finished from the topmost animal downward. The two water channels are bored through before the heads are polished. Column and basin are one piece of stone; nothing is pinned, dowelled or filled. Some 6,214kg with the basin, craned across and bedded onto a poured concrete footing. Our main studios are in the UK (Birmingham) and Dubai, with additional global workshops.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWater features are rare within \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/animal-sculptures\"\u003eanimal sculptures\u003c\/a\u003e, and belong properly among \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/garden-fountains\"\u003egarden fountains\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eSpecification\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003ctable class=\"spec_table\"\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eHeight\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e220cm\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eBase\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eIncluded\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eMaterial\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eHand-Carved Natural Marble\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/tbody\u003e\u003c\/table\u003e","brand":"Giant Sculptures","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53837288046939,"sku":"MST-ANI-139","price":29202.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0869\/3383\/2027\/files\/MST-ANI-139_1.jpg?v=1787180529","url":"https:\/\/giant-sculptures.com\/products\/four-dolphin-marble-fountain-220cm","provider":"Giant Sculptures","version":"1.0","type":"link"}