Pozzo di San Patrizio

Orvieto has a very special water well, the Pozzo di San Patrizio. This well is located next to the Fortezza Albornoz on the Piazza Cahen where you arrive by cog railway. The 62-meter-deep well was commissioned by Pope Clement VII and named after Saint Patrick, San Patrizio. The well was designed by architect Antonio da Sangallo il Giovane. The Pope stayed in Orvieto after the dramatic sack of Rome in 1527. He had the well built to provide an alternative water supply should Orvieto be besieged. The 16th-century well has no less than 248 steps and 70 windows. The water was drawn from the well with the help of donkeys that walked down and up the two spiral staircases. The two stairs nowhere intersect, creating one-way traffic: one staircase down, the other staircase up.

Today this well is a tourist attraction.

Information

Address: Viale Sangallo in Orvieto (TR)
Email: orvieto@sistemamusea.it
Entrance is 5,00 Euro per persoon

More about Orvieto

From the A1, Orvieto can be seen from afar with the Duomo towering high above the other buildings. You can’t help but stop and discover this vibrant little town. Orvieto is in Umbria near Lazio and Tuscany.

Orvieto has a rich cultural heritage and also is a very pleasant town. Visit the cathedral and the caves, tunnels, and galleries carved in tuff from the Orvieto Underground.

To get to the center, you can leave the car at the bottom of the cogwheel railway, the “funicolare”. This kind of cable car takes you up to the center of Orvieto. You also have several (covered) parking garages in Orvieto center. Or take a train to Orvieto and take the cable car from the railway station. 

The Duomo in Orvieto is a pearl of Italian Gothic architecture. This church can be admired from the outside and inside. You cannot visit the church for free during the day.

It is also wonderful to just stroll in the narrow winding streets. Enjoy a nice glass of Orvieto Classico wine on a terrace, or drink a cappuccino in one of the cozy coffee shops in the Corso Cavour.

Every Thursday in the Piazza del Popolo is a large weekly market where you can buy local food.

Buon divertimento ad Orvieto!