Excavations in northern India unearthed an elaborate 125-year-old building with a central staircase and multiple levels of arched hallways. Photos show the forgotten underground structure once used as a well. Officials uncovered the top of the buried structure in Chandausi while digging and demolishing buildings with an excavator, The Hindu, an Indian news outlet, reported on Dec. 22. Because of its distinctive design, officials recognized the building as an old stepwell.
Stepwells are a unique type of water well “primarily” found in northern India, according to Lonely Planet. These elaborate wells “were designed to fill and empty with the changing seasons, allowing access to the water via a series of cascading terraces, no matter how high or low the water level.” A photo shows the historic stepwell Agrasen Ki Baoli in New Delhi. It has a central staircase descending into the earth. Its sides have archways and hallways running parallel to the stairs.
The rediscovered stepwell in Chandausi appears to have a similar layout as the stepwell in New Delhi, according to videos shared by Asian News International on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“Preliminary estimates suggest the stepwell is approximately 125 to 150 years old,” Rajender Pensiya, the Sambhal District Magistrate and one of the officials overseeing the excavation, told The Hindu.
