Mario Botta in Saint-Blaise

10 July 2023

The fountain celebrating the millennium of Saint-Blaise was designed by Mario Botta (1943).

The Ruau stream is the source and origin of the village. The Ruau provided the village with 12 water sources. For six centuries, the water also powered the millstones of several mills. These mills traversed the village and followed the Ruau to Lake Neuchâtel.

In the upper mill, three wheels drove the millstones. This fountain symbolises the history and origins of Saint-Blaise. The monument is a way of reminding future generations of the identity of the village and this area.

Mario Botta realised one of his first projects at the Bigorio monastery in ‘his’ canton of Tessin in the 1960’s!

(Source: Fondation de la fontaine du Millénaire de Saint-Blaise)