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Porcellino's Fountain
The "Porcellino" ("Little Pig") is a bronze statue of a wild boar. It comes from a Roman copy of a Hellenistic marble, which Pope Pius IV donated to Cosimo I de' Medici in 1560. The wax model dates back to about 1620 and although it is a copy, the rendering of naturalistic details such as the hair of the animal reveals the extraordinary ability as a bronzeist of the Tacca. The fountain is located under the Loggia del Mercato Nuovo at least since 1640 and had a mainly practical function, as well as decorative, because it supplied water to merchants who traded under the loggia. The base is enriched by a bronze representation of the environment of the marshes where the wild boar lives, with plants and animals such as amphibians, reptiles and molluscs, all of remarkable realism. The popular tradition wants that touching the nose of the Porcellino brings good luck, but to get a good omen you put a coin in the mouth of the Porcellino after rubbing the nose: if the coin falling over the grate where the water falls will bring good luck, otherwise not.

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