Buckingham Fountain

The fountain was commisioned in 1927 by Kate Buckingham to honor her late brother Clarence. She had frequently traveled to Europe, where she admired the huge public fountains and wanted to bring some of Europe's monumentality to Chicago.

The design of the fountain is based on the 'Bassin de Latome' at the Versailles Palace near Paris and was built by Edward H. Bennett, who had also constructed the Michigan Avenue Bridge.

The fountain rises more than 7 meters high (23ft) and consists of 3 layers of bassins surrounded by four pairs of bronze seahorses. Each sea horse symbolizes a state bordering Lake Michigan (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin) while the fountain represents the lake itself. The statues were created by the French sculptor Marcel F. Loyau, who won the Prix National at the 1927 Paris Salon for it.

One of the largest fountains in the world, the Buckingham Fountain measures 85m/280ft in diameter. It features 134 jets powered by 3 pumps, its central jet pushes water up to 46m/150ft high.

The fountain's hourly 20 minute water display is best seen at dusk when it is beautifully animated with a now computerized choreography of color spotlights.