the town or village. and were usually placed in the central square, near the church. Inside the buffet, or the wall behind the fountain, was a hollow chamber called the bassin de repartition, connected by a pipe to the source of water below. The canon of the fountain was connected with the basin, with its entrance just below the water level in the basin. As the water poured out the canon, it would create a siphon, drawing water up the pipe and keeping the bassin de repartition filled. As the water poured out the canon, it would be captured in an earthenware jar and carried home. The water not taken this way went into a stone abreuvoir, or basin, where it could be drunk by cattle, sheep or horses. The overflow water went then into a separate basin, a lavoir, where it could be used for washing clothes. The overflow water was then used for irrigating gardens. Since the traditional village way of washing clothes was to use wood cinders as a detergent, which were rich in potassium, the wash water was an efficient fertilizer for the gardens. Another common village fountain design beginning in the 16th century was the fontaine ronde à fût, or barrel fountain. This type of fountain was illustrated on ancient Greek vases from the 6th century B.C. The fountain was free-standing, in the center of a square. It was composed of a circular stone basin, in the center of which was a stone column with a hollow cavity in the center for the bassin de repartition, connected to one or more canons. As the water poured from the canons, water was drawn by a siphon effect from the pipe below, keeping the bassin filled. The top of the fountain was covered by a stone cap, or couvercle, which could be removed to service the fountain. A third common type of village fountain was the fontaine à bulbe, or bulb fountain. The bulb fountain operated in the same way as the barrel fountain, except that the bassin de repartition was located in a separate stone container, usually bulb shape, placed on top of column. The canons of the fountain were attached to the bulb rather than the column. The masks through which the water flowed were frequently carved directly onto the stone of the bulb. French Renaissance The Italian Renaissance introduced a new kind of fountain