29/12/2025
Did you know ?
The fountain you see in the photo is unique : it is the last Wallace wall-mounted fountain still visible in Paris.
You can admire it at 53 rue Geoffroy-Saint-Hilaire, in the 5th arrondissement, against the National Museum of Natural History.
Originally, Richard Wallace had financed several wall-mounted models, but only this one survived the demolitions and redevelopments of the 20th century.
In the 19th century, when water was rarely drinkable and many Parisians drank alcohol to avoid diseases, Wallace funded his famous fountains to provide free, healthy water accessible to everyone and to fight alcoholism.
The most famous are the large fountains with four identical caryatids, symbolically representing: Simplicity, Charity, Sobriety, and Kindness.
Today, Paris has 107 of them, which have become true urban icons.
Curious to learn more ? Even more fascinating anecdotes await on our page !
🛎️ If you’d like to discover more stories and secrets on this theme, reach out to us at : greetsparis.com.
