![]() Spiral staircases became common in the medieval period when they were built into the walls of cathedrals for the private use of the clergy. Or the huge circular openings in the concrete walls of the Phillips Exeter Academy Library in America, designed by one of architecture’s greats, Louis Kahn. Or the circular proportions in Leonardo da Vinci’s drawing, ‘Vitruvian Man’. Think of the circular dome and oculus at the ancient Pantheon in Rome. Is there a more perfect geometric form than a circle, especially in architecture and art? ![]() ![]() The key to spiral stairs is, of course, the circle. What we do know for certain is that the oldest existing spiral staircase, with 135 steps, is inside Trajan’s Column in Rome, built in 113 AD. And this means that stairs based on circular geometry may have been with us for at least 3000 years. ![]() Some translations of the Old Testament tell us that the Temple of Solomon had ‘winding stairs’ – a spiral staircase, in other words. ![]()
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