Abhaneri village is still considered to be a tourist stop. The main reason is its ancient step wells which were apparently only made in India and mainly this area of India. Step wells, or ‘baoris’ were a unique invention by the locals for ‘harvesting’ rain water. This area was known for a scarcity of water, so they invented the concept of step wells. It’s really just a really big well that has steps on the sides so that people can walk down to the water level and get their water. The other main tourist attraction in Abhaneri is the Harshat Mata Temple. We visited the temple but it was nothing compared to the step well next door to it.

The Chand Baori (the Great Step Well) was built in the 8th or 9th century according to our local guide. It was not like anything that I had ever seen before. We were fortunate in a way in that the water level in the well was extremely low which enabled us to see almost to the bottom of it. The design was such that people could walk down to the water, no matter how low the water level. There was also a substantial building structure on one side of the step well and the entire well was surrounded by verandas and one level of structures on the other three sides. We also saw marvelous carved stone statues and figures at this place.

The first photo is the back side of the step well. The green on the bottom is the water which was obviously covered by water weeds.

The second photo is the front side of the well and again, the green on the bottom is the water level.

The third photo is more of a close up of the main building at the step well. It really must have been spectacular back in the 8th or 9th century. I thought it was pretty spectacular to see in the 21st century.