Portugal: Sintra – Initiation Well at Quinta de Regaleira

Palace aside, it’s the Initiation Well at Quinta de Regaleira that everybody is after. And it’s truly incredible! The palace owner was deeply obsessed with occult and Dante and the well is the result of this obsession – a subterranean “inverted tower” that goes down 27 m (88 feet) deep into the earth. engineered for secret Masonic and Templar initiation rituals. The well features a stone spiral staircase with nine tiers that represent the nine circles of Hell, nine sections of Purgatory, and nine skies of Paradise as described in Dante’s Inferno. At the end of the staircase is massive stone Knights Templar cross (embedded within an 8-pointed star) is carved into the floor. Once at the bottom, you need to navigate a labyrinth of dark tunnels to find an exit that is actually hidden behind a waterfall.