The Hellbrunn trick fountains are located in the Hellbrunn Palace Park on the southern outskirts of the city of Salzburg. They are the world's best-preserved fountains from the late Renaissance and Renaissance periods. of mannerism. They were commissioned around 1613 by Prince Archbishop Markus Sittikus von Hohenems.

The grottos and pond structures of the Renaissance in general and of Hellbrunn Palace in particular are originally based on the palace of Emperor Nero (“Domus aurea”), some of which were already known in the early Renaissance. Some (partially underground) parts of the palace (“caves”) were decorated there with gems and shells. Large geometrically designed ponds were laid out in the park of the palace. The villa in Tivoli, built for Cardinal Ippolito d'Este, was also a model for Hellbrunn. The highlight of the ornate water gardens is the Garden of Pratolino (only partially preserved) built by Francesco de Medici. Increasingly technical, the Renaissance games with and through water were intended to represent a divine art, a culmination of the imitation of nature.

Entirely in the style of a villa urbana of Italian character, the builder Markus Sittikus had his elaborate water features built in 1613 in the palace gardens of Hellbrunn, along with other buildings, based on these Italian water features. These trick fountains were soon to gain fame far beyond Salzburg and were often compared to the most famous installations in Italy. [wikipedia]