Abundant Water for Fountains Around Antigua

The Panchoy Valley, where La Antigua Guatemala is located, used to be a lake at the time the Conquistadores arrived and when they founded the second Santiago de Guatemala in the Almolonga Valley, now Ciudad Vieja which is about two miles from Antigua. Then the Panchoy Lake basin was fed by the Pensativo River. The Panchoy Lake was filled with packed soil and stones as the third Santiago de los Caballeros de Guatemala was founded in 1541 and the city began to grow. The last remains of the Pensativo River can still be observed today along the Calle Chipilapa during the rainy season.

Also, both Panchoy and Almolonga valleys are surrounded by three volcanoes and mountain ranges which served as funnels during the rainy season collecting tremendous amounts of water; much more than can be consumed by all the trees and plants on the hills around La Antigua Guatemala, which by the way, remain evergreen year round.

These are some of the reasons why there’s an abundant supply of water in and around La Antigua Guatemala. This ample source, fuente in Spanish, of water can also help explain why there are thousands of fountains, fuentes in Spanish, and búcaros, half fountains embedded on walls, in and around La Antigua Guatemala. It seems like every restaurant has at least one fountain, even the fast food restaurants. You should browse the Fountains and Gardens category to see over 35 samples taken over the three years of existence and 1215 entries of AntiguaDailyPhoto. I hope you enjoy the fountain tour through time. 😉

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