The Cormorant Fountain

The city's iconic fountain

Located near the Porte Notre-Dame, inside the city, it was built in 1761, and replaced two fountains that flowed on the square. The washhouse that was attached to the fountain at the time is now against the ramparts. The Cormorant Fountain, as well as all the others built at this time, testifies to the importance of water in Pernes at the end of the 18th century.

The Cormorant Fountain has an octagonal basin with four straight faces and four others curved for practical and aesthetic reasons. On the central pillar, which also has an octagonal base, a rounded body stands out. Eight masks decorate it. Four of them seem to evoke faces referring to the legend of King Midas. This king with donkey ears had the power to turn anything he touched into gold.

At the end of the 19th century, a mayor of Pernes decided to level the tops of the masks so as to place a candle during nocturnal celebrations. Above the belly, on each side is engraved the city's motto “Dei gratia inter alia lucet”, which means: “By the grace of God, she shines above all.” The city's motto is complemented by the coat of arms sculpted above: the sun and the silver pearl. They evoke the richness and fertility of the land. At the top of the monument is the sculpture that made it famous: a cormorant eating a fish in its beak to, perhaps, feed its young.