![Madrid-Debod-TempleP1340709](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/Madrid-Debod-TempleP1340709.jpg)
A reflecting pool, also called a reflection pool, is a
water feature
In landscape architecture and garden design, a water feature is one or more items from a range of fountains, jeux d'eau, pools, ponds, rills, artificial waterfalls, and streams. Before the 18th century they were usually powered by gravity, ...
found in gardens, parks, and memorial sites. It usually consists of a shallow pool of water, undisturbed by fountain jets, for a reflective surface.
Design
Reflecting pools are often designed with the outer basin floor at the rim slightly deeper than the central area to suppress wave formation. They can be as small as a bird bath to as large as a major civic element. Their origins are from ancient
Persian gardens
The tradition and style of garden design represented by Persian gardens or Iranian gardens ( fa, باغ ایرانی), an example of the paradise garden, has influenced the design of gardens from Andalusia to India and beyond. The gardens of the ...
.
List of notable pools
![Miroir d'eau place de la bourse à Bordeaux](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/db/Miroir_d%27eau_place_de_la_bourse_%C3%A0_Bordeaux.jpg)
* The
Miroir d'eau
The Miroir d'eau (Water Mirror) in Bordeaux is the world's largest reflecting pool, covering . Located on the quay of the Garonne in front of the Place de la Bourse, it was built in 2006.
In the context of the quays embellishment operation (2000 ...
(Water mirror) on
Place de la Bourse
Place de la Bourse is a square in Bordeaux, France and one of the city's most recognisable sights. Built from 1730 to 1775 along the river Garonne, it was a multi-building development designed by architect Ange-Jacques Gabriel
Ange-Jacques Gabr ...
in
Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...
, France, is the world's largest reflecting pool.
* The
Mughal garden
Mughal gardens are a type of garden built by the Mughals. This style was influenced by the Persian gardens particularly the Charbagh structure, which is intended to create a representation of an earthly utopia in which humans co-exist in perfe ...
reflecting pools at the
Taj Mahal
The Taj Mahal (; ) is an Islamic ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1631 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his favourite wife, Mu ...
in
Agra
Agra (, ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital New Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
*
Chehel Sotoun
Chehel Sotoun ( fa, چهل ستون, literally: “Forty Columns”) is a Persian pavilion in the middle of a park at the far end of a long pool, in Isfahan, Iran, built by Shah Abbas II to be used for his entertainment and receptions. In this ...
in Iran
* The
Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool
The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool is the largest of the many reflecting pools in Washington, D.C., United States. It is a long and large rectangular pool located on the National Mall, directly east of the Lincoln Memorial, with the Washington ...
and
Capitol Reflecting Pool
The Capitol Reflecting Pool is a reflecting pool in Washington, D.C., United States. It lies to the west of the United States Capitol and is the westernmost element of the Capitol grounds (or the easternmost element of the National Mall, accordin ...
, in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
*
Mary Gibbs and Jesse H. Jones Reflection Pool
The Mary Gibbs and Jesse H. Jones Reflection Pool is a reflecting pool in Houston's Hermann Park, in the U.S. state of Texas.
The design of the Houston Zoo
The Houston Zoo is a zoological park located within Hermann Park in Houston, Texas, Un ...
,
Hermann Park
Hermann Park is a urban park in Houston, Texas, situated at the southern end of the Museum District. The park is located immediately north of the Texas Medical Center and Brays Bayou, east of Rice University, and slightly west of the Third ...
, Houston, Texas, U.S.
* The modernist
Palácio do Planalto
The Palácio do Planalto () in Brasília is the official workplace of the president of Brazil.[Palácio da Alvorada
The Palácio da Alvorada () is the official residence of the President of Brazil. It is located in the national capital of Brasília, on a peninsula at the margins of Paranoá Lake. The building was designed by Oscar Niemeyer and built between ...](_blank)
in
Brasília
Brasília (; ) is the federal capital of Brazil and seat of government of the Federal District. The city is located at the top of the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West region. It was founded by President Juscelino Kubitsche ...
,
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
*
Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park
The Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park covers about 35 acres (0.14 km2) and includes several sites in Atlanta, Georgia related to the life and work of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. Within the park is his boyhood h ...
in
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
* The
Oklahoma City National Memorial
The Oklahoma City National Memorial is a memorial in the United States that honors the victims, survivors, rescuers, and all who were affected by the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19, 1995. The memorial is located in downtown Oklahoma City on th ...
, at the site of the
Oklahoma City bombing
The Oklahoma City bombing was a domestic terrorist truck bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, on April 19, 1995. Perpetrated by two anti-government extremists, Timothy McVeigh and Terry N ...
* The
Hollywood Bowl
The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheatre in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It was named one of the 10 best live music venues in America by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine in 2018.
The Hollywood Bowl is known for its distin ...
in
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, a former reflecting pool was located in front of the stage, circa 1953 - 1972.
* The
National September 11 Memorial & Museum
The National September 11 Memorial & Museum (also known as the 9/11 Memorial & Museum) is a memorial and museum in New York City commemorating the September 11 attacks of 2001, which killed 2,977 people, and the 1993 World Trade Center bomb ...
, located at the
World Trade Center site
The World Trade Center site, often referred to as "Ground zero#World Trade Center, Ground Zero" or "the Pile" immediately after the September 11 attacks, is a 14.6-acre (5.9 ha) area in Lower Manhattan in New York City. The site is bounde ...
in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, has two reflecting pools on the location where the
Twin Towers stood.
Gallery
File:Taj Mahal 001.jpg, The reflecting pool of the Taj Mahal
The Taj Mahal (; ) is an Islamic ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1631 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his favourite wife, Mu ...
Image:WLM14ES - Patio de los Arrayanes, Alhambra. - julianrdc.jpg, The reflecting pool in the Patio de los Arrayanes, at the Moorish Alhambra
The Alhambra (, ; ar, الْحَمْرَاء, Al-Ḥamrāʾ, , ) is a palace and fortress complex located in Granada, Andalusia, Spain. It is one of the most famous monuments of Islamic architecture and one of the best-preserved palaces of the ...
of Granada, Spain
Image:Chehel Sotoun 2.JPG, A World Heritage Persian garden
The tradition and style of garden design represented by Persian gardens or Iranian gardens ( fa, باغ ایرانی), an example of the paradise garden, has influenced the design of gardens from Andalusia to India and beyond. The gardens of the ...
site, Chehel Sotoun
Chehel Sotoun ( fa, چهل ستون, literally: “Forty Columns”) is a Persian pavilion in the middle of a park at the far end of a long pool, in Isfahan, Iran, built by Shah Abbas II to be used for his entertainment and receptions. In this ...
, in Iran.
Image:ReflectionPool UWA gobeirne.jpg, Reflecting Pool at the University of Western Australia
The University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Perth, the state capital, with a secondary campus in Albany, Western Australia, Albany an ...
File:Palacio do Planalto.jpeg, Reflecting pool of the Palácio do Planalto
The Palácio do Planalto () in Brasília is the official workplace of the president of Brazil.[modernist
Modernism is both a philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new forms of art, philosophy, an ...](_blank)
capital city Brasília
Brasília (; ) is the federal capital of Brazil and seat of government of the Federal District. The city is located at the top of the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West region. It was founded by President Juscelino Kubitsche ...
Image:Water reflections of clouds in water (27327378883).jpg, Washington Monument
The Washington Monument is an obelisk shaped building within the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate George Washington, once commander-in-chief of the Continental Army (1775–1784) in the American Revolutionary War and the ...
from the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool
The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool is the largest of the many reflecting pools in Washington, D.C., United States. It is a long and large rectangular pool located on the National Mall, directly east of the Lincoln Memorial, with the Washington ...
in Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
Image:USA_09562_Boston_Luca_Galuzzi_2007.jpg, Reflecting pool at Christian Science Plaza in Boston, Massachusetts
Image:Hermann Park Texas.jpg, Mary Gibbs and Jesse H. Jones Reflection Pool
The Mary Gibbs and Jesse H. Jones Reflection Pool is a reflecting pool in Houston's Hermann Park, in the U.S. state of Texas.
The design of the Houston Zoo
The Houston Zoo is a zoological park located within Hermann Park in Houston, Texas, Un ...
in Hermann Park
Hermann Park is a urban park in Houston, Texas, situated at the southern end of the Museum District. The park is located immediately north of the Texas Medical Center and Brays Bayou, east of Rice University, and slightly west of the Third ...
in Houston, Texas
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
Image:12.6.11BerryBerensonPanelN-76ByLuigiNovi5.jpg, The North Reflecting Pool at the National September 11 Memorial and Museum at dusk, World Trade Center
World Trade Centers are sites recognized by the World Trade Centers Association.
World Trade Center may refer to:
Buildings
* List of World Trade Centers
* World Trade Center (2001–present), a building complex that includes five skyscrapers, a ...
, New York
Image:ChristchurchArtsCentrePond gobeirne.jpg, Reflecting pond at the Christchurch Arts Centre
The Arts Centre Te Matatiki Toi Ora is a hub for arts, culture, education, creativity and entrepreneurship in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is located in the Gothic Revival former Canterbury College (now the University of Canterbury), Christchu ...
in New Zealand
References
{{Islamic architecture
Garden features
Bodies of water
Architectural elements
Islamic architectural elements
Persian gardens