Oortwolk Fountain

The fountain is an homage to the world-famous astronomer Jan Hendrik Oort, born in Franeker. His hypothesis that a 'cloud' of billions of cometary objects moves around our solar system marked a breakthrough in astronomy. The fountain is designed as a series of waterfalls that flow from a basin along a vertical chain of night-coloured pearls into the pool. One of the pearls is silver-coloured, like the colour of the moon, another is gilded, the colour of the sun. 'The Oort Cloud' itself is a mist of fine droplets that fall from a gold-coloured mesh in the basin.

Jean-Michel Othoniel (1964), artist and designer of the Oort Cloud. You gained great renown through your experimental use of glass from Murano (Italy), with which you design multicoloured sculptures in the form of large 'beads'. His numerous works in public spaces highlight unexpected aspects of the history of the location or the city and create a splendid atmosphere of colour and light. For the Palace of Versailles he designed a fountain based on the dance steps of Louis XIV.

Before your visit to Franeker, listen to the podcast series 11fountains. A city resident takes you into the remarkable story behind the fountain. The episode about Franeker can be found below, just like the other episodes.

Combine your visit to the 11fountains with a city walk. A walking route through Franeker past all the highlights you should have seen.