It is decorated with a complex of bronze statues based on Carlo Collodi's The Adventures of Pinocchio, designed by Italian sculptor Attilio Fagioli (1877–1966) and realized by the Fonderia Artistica Battaglia foundry.
Smaller statues of the Cat and the Fox characters from Collodi's book were part of the complex, but have since been partially vandalized.
The pedestal on which Pinocchio is standing bears an inscription by the Milanese poet Antonio Negri (1881–1966)[1][2] and based on a line in Collodi's book, reading: Com'ero buffo quand'ero un burattino!
[3]In 1989, several prefabricated shopping stalls were placed in the traffic lane where the fountain is located, thus making it less visible than it used to be.
Thereafter, the fountain has experienced a long period of decay, as the interior of the traffic lane has been used as a rubbish dump[1] and repeated vandalisms have occurred; most notably, the statue of the Cat was stolen, and the nose of Pinocchio has been broken.