The fountains were a familiar gathering spot for women from way back in time. It was dawn and Ypsipyli rested at the Ottoman Fountain of Myrina, located at the entry point of today’s market, to cool off and contemplate. Always with caution, however, for she must not be seen, she knows she is in danger. Yet, the fountain inscription fills her with hope.
The surviving above-ground fountains of Lemnos belong to the period from the second half of the 19th century to the early 1930s. Of these, the oldest is the Ottoman one, which stands in the market of Myrina and its construction dates back to 1771.
It is a solid, four-sided structure connected to a cistern. On the front there is a spout. The inscription that dominates above brings to life the memories of Ottoman rule and reveals the chronology of the fountain. In Arabic script, the marble plaque proclaims: "And from water is born every living organism, source of good and mercy. Blessed Qabtquran Muhammad Pasha. Hijri year 1185.” It is said that its donor, an officer of the Janissaries Order, was a native of Lemnos.