Stepwells are wells, cisterns or ponds with a long corridor of steps that descend to the water level. Stepwells played a significant role in defining subterranean architecture in western India from 7th to 19th century. Some stepwells are multi-storeyed and can be accessed by a Persian wheel which is pulled by a bull to bring water to the first or second floor. They are most common in western India and are also found in the other more arid regions of the Indian subcontinent, extending into Pakistan. The construction of stepwells is mainly utilitarian, though they may include embellishments of architectural significance, and be temple tanks.
Chand Baori, in the village of Abhaneri near Bandikui, Rajasthan is one of the deepest and largest stepwells in India
The Rani ki Vav, Patan, Gujarat
Agrasen Ki Baoli in New Delhi, rebuilt in the 14th century
Shravanabelagola stepped pond, Karnataka
A well is an excavation or structure created in the earth by digging, driving, or drilling to access liquid resources, usually water. The oldest and most common kind of well is a water well, to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The well water is drawn up by a pump, or using containers, such as buckets or large water bags that are raised mechanically or by hand. Water can also be injected back into the aquifer through the well. Wells were first constructed at least eight thousand years ago and historically vary in construction from a simple scoop in the sediment of a dry watercourse to the qanats of Iran, and the stepwells and sakiehs of India. Placing a lining in the well shaft helps create stability, and linings of wood or wickerwork date back at least as far as the Iron Age.
A dug well in a village in Faryab Province, Afghanistan
The difference between a well and a cistern is in the source of the water: a cistern collects rainwater where a well draws from groundwater.
Camel drawing water from a well, Djerba island, Tunisia, 1960
Neolithic Linear Pottery culture well, 5300 BC, Erkelenz, Germany