Fuente de Neptuno, Madrid
The Fuente de Neptuno (Neptune Fountain) stands in the middle of Plaza de Cánovas del Castillo, on the Paseo del Prado in Madrid. It shows the Roman god of the sea on a shell-shaped chariot and is one of the three 18th-century fountains designed for the Salón del Prado. This post covers its history, what the sculpture shows and what is within a few minutes’ walk.
History of the fountain
The fountain was part of the layout of the Salón del Prado, the tree-lined promenade created under Charles III. The plan placed a fountain at each end, Neptune and Cibeles, and a third, Apollo, in the middle. The architect Ventura Rodríguez signed the design for Neptune in 1780, according to the Madrid city council’s monuments register.
The sculpture was commissioned from Juan Pascual de Mena. Because of his advanced age, his pupil José Arias carved the figure of Neptune and the horses. When Pascual de Mena died, the shell chariot, the water and the dolphins were still unfinished; they were completed by José Rodríguez, Pablo de la Cerda and José Guerra, who reported the end of the work on 30 October 1786. All the carving is in white marble from Montesclaros (Toledo), the same stone used for the Cibeles fountain, which has stood on the Paseo since 1782.
Until 1897 the fountain stood further along the Prado, between the central roadway and the Paseo de Trajineros, facing Cibeles. The city council then decided to move it to the centre of the new Plaza de Cánovas del Castillo, and by 1898 the move was complete. Since then the fountain has been repaired several times: it was covered with a protective structure during the Civil War, a second basin was added in 1969, and it was restored in 1981–82 and again in 1995.
What the sculpture shows
Neptune stands on a chariot in the form of a shell, rising from a rocky base. He holds a trident, and the chariot is drawn by two hippocamps, the mythological sea-horses that stand for storms and the raging sea. Dolphins complete the group. In Roman mythology Neptune is the son of Saturn and Ops and the brother of Jupiter, the equivalent of the Greek Poseidon. From the Renaissance onwards he was used as an image of a ruler’s command of the seas. In 18th-century Spain that meant the Crown’s overseas trade and possessions.
The bronze trident is not the original: the first one was stolen and was replaced in 1814.
Neptune and Atlético de Madrid
The fountain is the place where supporters of Atlético de Madrid celebrate their team’s victories, while Real Madrid supporters gather at Cibeles. On any other day the square is a busy roundabout, and the fountain is seen from the pavements around it rather than from close up.
What is nearby
The fountain lies in the Paseo del Arte area. The Paseo del Prado and El Retiro Park, known together as the Landscape of Light, were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site on 25 July 2021.
- Museo del Prado, a few steps south. In 2026 it opens Monday to Saturday from 10am to 8pm and on Sundays and public holidays from 10am to 7pm. General admission is €15 and the concession ticket €7.50; entry is free for all visitors in the last two hours of each day. See the post on the Prado Museum.
- Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza, on the north-west corner of the square.
- The Palace and the Mandarin Oriental Ritz, two of Madrid’s historic hotels, on either side of the square.
- Cibeles Fountain, at the north end of the Paseo del Prado, about ten minutes on foot. See the post on Plaza de Cibeles.
Practical information
- Address: Plaza Cánovas del Castillo, 28014 Madrid.
- Price: free access, at any time.
- Metro: Banco de España or Sevilla (line 2).
- Cercanías: Madrid-Atocha.
- Bus: lines 001, 10, 14, 27, 34, 37 and 45, among others.
For students
Neptune is a landmark on the way between lectures and museums rather than a visit in itself. A walk from Atocha to Cibeles along the Paseo del Prado passes all three of the Salón del Prado fountains in about twenty minutes and costs nothing, and the free evening hours at the Prado fit well at the end of it. Those planning a course in the capital can read more about studying in Madrid or browse schools in Spain.
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