What is "nymphaeum"

n. An ancient Greek or Roman shrine consecrated to water nymphs, often with a fountain.

n. (alternative spelling of nymphaeum English)

A nymphaeum or nymphaion , in ancient Greece and Rome, was a monument consecrated to the nymphs, especially those of springs.

These monuments were originally natural grottoes, which tradition assigned as habitations to the local nymphs. They were sometimes so arranged as to furnish a supply of water, as at Pamphylian Side. A nymphaeum dedicated to a local water nymph, Coventina, was built along Hadrian's Wall, in the northernmost reach of the Roman Empire. Subsequently, artificial grottoes took the place of natural ones.

Nymphaion or Nymphaeum was an ancient Greek colony in Illyria. It was used as a harbour by the Syracusian colony of Lissus. It was located three miles away from Lissos. It was mentioned by Pliny the Elder (23 CE – 79), Lucanus (39 AD – 65 AD), Livy (59 BC – AD 17) and Julius Caesar (100 BC - 44 BC). It is now located at modern Shëngjin, Albania.

The Nymphaeum is a partially preserved Roman public fountain in Amman, Jordan. It is located a short distance from the Hashemite Plaza, the Roman Theater and the Odeon, at the crossing of Ibn al-Atheer and Quraysh streets in al-Balad. Such fountains were very popular in Roman cities, and Philadelphia, as Amman was known by ancient Greeks and Romans, was no exception. This nymphaeum is believed to have contained a 600 square meters pool which was three meters deep and was continuously refilled with water.