¿Tanto va el cántaro a la fuente que… encuentra un universal paremiológico?

The systematic paremiographic work that has been carried out for centuries has resulted in the collection of an abundant flow of sententious statements. However, their scientific study began much later and the birth of Paremiology did not take place until the twentieth century. Different approaches are currently considered for paremiological analysis (linguistic, literary, ethnological, or translation studies…).This article is focused on the study of the proverb «Tanto va el cántaro a la fuente que al final se rompe» («The pitcher goes so often to the well that it is broken at last») from several points of view. Once its old and modern forms are known, it is possible to establish its diachrony and observe its synchrony. The search for paremiological correspondences in other languages will help draw the linguistic map of this proverb. Its cultural referents are the key that opens the door to a past less distant than one could think