Fontana dello Sprone, Zierbrunnen in Italien von Bernardo Buontalenti

The Fontana dello Sprone is a small fountain at the corner of Borgo San Jacopo and Via dello Sprone in the Oltrarno district. It features a marble shell-shaped basin with a carved grotesque stone face, from whose mouth water flows.

Long attributed to Bernardo Buontalenti and dated to 1608, for the wedding of Cosimo II de' Medici and Maria Maddalena of Austria, the fountain was shown by recent research (Galante) to have been installed at the end of the aqueduct works ordered by Ferdinando II, in 1638–1639, and made by the sculptor Francesco Generini. It was restored by Giuseppe Del Rosso in the early 19th century and again in 1944 after war damage.

The name Sprone refers to the acute-angled corner where two streets meet, a shape found in several spots in Florence. The fountain is also called Fontanello dello Sprone or Fontana della Nicchia. In 1984 the city placed a traffic light on the spur; artist Mario Mariotti, whose atelier was nearby on via Toscanella, posted a pasquinade mocking the decision, and the light was soon removed, though holes remain in the stone.

The fountain stands in a tight corner where Via dello Sprone meets Borgo San Jacopo, below a private terrace of the Casa dei Frescobaldi, so it is seen on foot while crossing the Oltrarno. Look for the holes left in the stone by a traffic light mounted on the sprone in 1984 and later removed.

In 1984 the city placed a traffic light on the sprone between the Medici shield and the fountain. The artist Mario Mariotti, whose studio was nearby on via Toscanella, posted a satirical sign mocking the decision; the light was removed soon after, but the mounting holes remain in the stone.