Fontana Maggiore, Perugia

The Fontana Maggiore stands in Perugia's main square in front of the Palazzo dei Priori, built in the late 1270s to celebrate fresh water brought into the hilltop town by a new aqueduct. Nicola Pisano and his son Giovanni carved the two stacked marble basins with panels of the months, the liberal arts and scenes from the Bible and Roman history, topped by a bronze bowl with a group of nymphs. It is the oldest fountain in this gallery, and the steps around it are where the whole square seems to sit and linger.