Water-Spouting Mermaid

History of the work

A fountain with an oval basin is set against the wall behind the small orangery of the Elfenau. Its spout is a bronze water nymph made by Max Fueter in 1975; Wikidata gives bronze and limestone as materials. SIKART's list of works records a wall fountain titled 'Seejungfrau' (mermaid) at the address of the municipal nursery, Elfenauweg 94, which points to the same work.

The building in front has a long history. According to the city's building inventory it was originally a small farmhouse from around 1730/40, extended at the end of the 18th century. From 1814 to 1816 the Russian Grand Duchess Anna Feodorovna, who gave the estate the name Elfenau, had the orangery added in Empire style. The city of Bern bought the estate in 1918, and in 1928/29 the municipal nursery moved into the farm buildings. During a renovation in 1976/77 by the firm Atelier 5, the small orangery regained its Empire-period appearance.

Max Fueter was born on 6 March 1898; the Historical Dictionary of Switzerland and Wikipedia give Konolfingen as his birthplace, SIKART gives Bern. He died in Bern on 29 September 1983. After years in Berlin and Rome he lived in Wabern until 1955 and worked for many public and private clients. The dictionary highlights his portraits and fountain figures, which are dominated by the human form.

Fueter was 77 years old when he made the nymph. In the same year Max Huggler published a book on Fueter's fountains in the city. Among his better-known fountains in the city are the flute player in the arcade of Rathausgasse and the Lebensbrunnen (fountain of life) on the Grosse Schanze from 1972. Behind the orangery you can watch the water fall from the figure into the oval basin.

Researched and summarised by Bärn Kit. Sources: Kultur Stadt Bern, Kunst im öffentlichen Raum (offene Daten) · Bauinventar der Stadt Bern: Elfenauweg 94 (Kleine Orangerie) · Bauinventar der Stadt Bern: Baugruppe Elfenau · SIKART: Max Fueter · Historisches Lexikon der Schweiz: Max Fueter · Wikipedia (de): Max Fueter · Wikidata: Brunnen Orangerie Elfenau · Wikimedia Commons: Brunnen Orangerie Elfenau