Fuente de los Cántaros is an outdoor fountain and sculpture of an indigenous woman in Mexico City's Parque México, in Mexico, created by José María Hernández Urbina in 1927, and restored in 2008.
Description and history
The fountain was created by José María Hernández Urbina, with Luz Jiménez, an indigenousNahua woman, as the model, in 1927. The statue, 3 m in height[1] and constructed from concrete,[2] depicts a naked woman with a water pitcher under each arm, from which the water flowed. Locally she is referred to as La Muñeca or the Mujer de los Cántaros.[2][3] The fountain faces onto Calle de Michoacán, which divides the park, at the entrance to the Teatro al Aire Libre Lindbergh (Lindbergh Forum, named for Charles Lindbergh).[a] Urbina, together with the architect Roberto Montenegro was one of the creators of the Forum, with its Art Deco features, in the 1920s, at the time that Colonia Condesa was being developed. The statue has come to symbolize the Mexican people (Mexicayotl or Mexicanidad) before The Conquest. The Forum was poorly maintained, and fell into disrepair, but in 2008 a restoration began at a cost of 21 million pesos over 17 months, but was considered controversial by local residents.[5] The fountain is considered an important landmark and attracts many visitors.[6][7]
In popular culture
The statue has become symbolised in stencil graffiti on the walls of Mexico City,[8] and has been replicated in fibreglass for a film and is a frequent subject for artists.[5]
^Lindbergh landed his plane, Spirit of St. Louis in Mexico City on 13 December 1927, after leaving Washington DC, and the event was commemorated by naming the forum after him[3][4]