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| Interior of the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi |
Each is beautiful in its own way but the Loretto Chapel has what may be the most famous staircase in the world. The spiral staircase is visited by over 250,000 people each year! The legend behind it has even inspired a movie, titled appropriately, The Staircase (1998).
The chapel was commissioned in the 1880's to be built as a part of a school for girls. The legend has it that the chapel was built with an upper level balcony at the rear of the chapel but there was no staircase to reach the balcony. The nuns that ran the school couldn't find anyone to build the stairs so they began to pray a novena to St. Joseph, the patron saint of carpenters. Being that I'm a Presbyterian, I can't explain what that is, but...
On the ninth day of the novena, a carpenter came from out of town and offered to design and build the needed staircase. He began construction using only simple hand tools and wood acquired from an unknown source. He used no nails or glue. Once he completed the job, he left town without being paid.
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| The Staircase |
The legend is made even more grandiose in that it claims the stairs shouldn't even stand since they have no central pole nor any attachment to the building except at the bottom and at the top. In other words, the staircase, resembling illustrations I've seen of a DNA helix, is a miracle.
The staircase rises some 21 feet from the floor to the balcony, makes two complete 360 degree circles and has 33 steps, referring to the age of Jesus at his crucifixion. Please note, I didn't count them, just passing on the legend.
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| Interior of Loretto Chapel |
Snopes.com, that wonderful source for debunking urban legends and other tall tales, has a little different take on the story. I have no feelings one way or the other but will say, the chapel and the staircase are beautiful and well worth the price of admission, Yes, the chapel was sold to a private company and charges a fee to enter. It is also available for rent for weddings and the like.
