Fountain of the Tortoises |
At California
and Taylor Streets, Huntington Park is a charming, distinctly cosmopolitan
public park at the top of Nob Hill on the site of a once great mansion. Features
here include a tree lined court, fountains, playground, and formal lawns.
At the front of the park, where parlors were located in Crocker's palace,
is the beautiful bronze Dancing Sprites. The
centerpiece of the park is a copy of Landini's 1585 Fountain of the Tortoises
(seen here). The original is at the Piazza
Mattei in Rome. Bella Farrow - the socialite
and philanthropist whose Nob Hill Foundation oversaw a recent restoration
of the Huntington Park fountain - says plainly, "Ours is better." Mister
SF agrees. For weary grown-ups, no visit to Huntington Park is complete
without a ride on the children's swings. |
