The bold scheme of St. Patrick Well consists of a circular shaft 200 feet deep and 45 feet wide lighted by 72-arched windows cut into the Pozzo di San Patrizio. Two spiral staircases descend from opposing doors of the shaft to access and transport water. Both stairs wind around each other, never meeting and resembling the structure of a DNA helix with 248 steps for each one. St. Patrick Well’s ingenious design permitted mule-drawn carts carrying water bags to descend on one side of the double helix and ascend on the other end without ever colliding.
Well of Saint Patrick
