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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The so-called Samaritan fountain is an 18th century hydraulic monument, located in Saint-Seine-l'Abbaye, Burgundy-Franche-Comté. It is backed by the stairway leading to the old gate of the Benedictine Abbey cloister, a building whose history dates back to the 6th century. The fountain, classified as historical monuments in 1914, is distinguished by its polygonal limestone basin and a cast iron plate decorated with a relief depicting Jesus and the Samaritan, as well as a group of characters. Its water, captured in the vicinity, was flowing into this basin, illustrating the importance of hydraulic arrangements in medieval and modern abbeys.

The fountain was built between 1715 and 1740, a period marked by major renovations within the Abbey of Saint-Seine. At that time, the abbey, although less prosperous than in previous centuries, still benefited from modern developments, such as the new cloister erected around 1745 under the abbatiate of Pierre de Fontenette. This work was intended to harmonize monastic buildings with architectural standards of the 18th century. The fountain, integrated into this ensemble, bears witness to the ingenuity of monks to combine functionality (water supply) and religious symbolism, thus reflecting the spiritual and practical duality of monastic life.

The Abbey of Saint-Seine, founded in the sixth century by the monk Sigo (or Soigne), experienced periods of decline and renaissance, especially in the thirteenth and fifteenth centuries, where construction campaigns transformed its appearance. In the 18th century, however, its activity declined sharply: during the Revolution it had only two monks, and its buildings were partly demolished after their sale as national goods. The Samaritan fountain, spared, remains one of the few remains of this late era, recalling the central role of water in the daily and spiritual life of monastic communities. Its classification in 1914 highlights its heritage value, both artistic, historical and technical.

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