This is a close-up of the infamous "Miraculous Stairway" of Loretto Chapel (built in 1873) in Santa Fe, New Mexico. This very elegant and graceful spiral staircase is called the "miraculous stairway" because it was a miracle of 19th century engineering - it has no central support. Apparently the chapel was completed without any stairway access to the choir loft. Ladders wouldn't do because the chapel was built to serve a girl's school, and modesty was a concern. The Sisters of Loretto decided to dedicate a novena (devotional) to St Joseph, the patron saint of carpenters. On the 9th and last day of the novena, a man with a tool box appeared from out of the blue on a donkey, and built the miraculous staircase. Legend has it that it was built by St Joseph himself, who vanished just as mysteriously after the staircase was built, receiving no payment.

If you wish to see a couple more images of this staircase, please go to my Santa Fe folder:

http://www.photo.net/photodb/folder?folder_id=369167