Traditional wells to collect water are usually located in the surroundings of houses, either in the patio of the house (such as the traditional artesian well) or in the neighborhood common area (with specific models such as the unique pozzi of the city of Venice). For safety and utility, the well is surrounded at surface level with a curb, like a parapet or parapet "Parapet (architecture)"), on which a pulley or crank is installed to raise and lower the container, usually a bucket "Bucket (container)") or bucket. A lid is also usually placed on it to prevent dirt from falling inside or possible accidents.[15]​.

In towns where, due to wastewater filtration, the water table may be contaminated and the well water is no longer drinkable, it can continue to be used for cleaning and irrigation tasks.[16]​.

There has been an archaeological reference of wells from BC. C. in Persia.

As a symbol, the well already appears in the most primitive cultures, prior to the civilizations of Antiquity.[17] Thus, for example, the controversial German musicologist Marius Schneider noted that in medicinal rites among animists, the axis or center of the process is represented by a lake or well, with whose waters the sick people wet their hands, chest and head; As aquatic signs of salvation, reeds grow at the edge of the water and shells are deposited.[18] Also the Greek goddess of agriculture, Demeter, and other classical deities are usually represented next to the edge of a well. In Christianity, the well is a symbol of salvation (within the conceptual scheme of life as a pilgrimage), the refreshing and purifying water being "a symbol of the sublime aspiration, of the silver rope that binds the palace in the center."[17]​.

In the act of drawing water from a well - as in the symbolism of fishing - the purifying process of "extracting from the depths" is read, what rises being "pure numinous content".[note 1]​ In the same way as looking at the bottom of a well, like contemplating the water of a lake are representations of the contemplative mystical act. Finally, Juan Eduardo Cirlot also notes the fact of the association of well in medieval allegories as a symbol of the soul and feminine attribute.

In the iconography of Christianity, as in that of other religions, the rim of the well is an almost recurring element, present in several well-known passages from the Old and New Testaments. The Bible, as a book written by and for a people of shepherds, the well is "the meeting place."[19]​ As a symbol it materializes not only due to its functionality and usefulness but also representing the place of living waters (culmination of the Christian revelation), which is synthesized in the passage of Christ and the Samaritan woman where Jesus "clearly expresses his messianic condition."[19]​.

In a broader cultural framework, and always through the inheritance of symbolism, the well synthesizes a triple iconography as an "axis of the representation of the Universe":

From a rich collection of proverbs, adages "Adagio (linguistics)"), idioms and sayings related to the well, they can serve as examples:[20]​.

Very early Neolithic wells are known from the Eastern Mediterranean:[2] The oldest reliably dated well is from the pre-Pottery Neolithic archaeological site (PPN) of Kissonerga-Mylouthkia in Cyprus. Around , a well (well 116) of circular diameter was cut through limestone to reach an aquifer at a depth of 8 metres. Well 2070 at Kissonerga-Mylouthkia, dating to the late PPN, it reaches a depth of 13 metres. Other slightly younger wells are known from this site and from neighboring Parekklisha-Shillourokambos. Another early lined stone well[3]​ 5.5 meters deep is documented at a flooded late PPN site (c.) at 'Atlit-Yam off the coast near modern Haifa in Israel.

Wood-lined wells are known from the early Neolithic linear pottery culture, for example in Ostrov, Czech Republic, dated , [4] Kückhoven (a peripheral center of Erkelenz), dated 5090 BC, and Eythra") in Schletz (a peripheral center of Asparn an der Zaya) in Austria, dated 5200 BC. C..[5]​.

The Neolithic Chinese discovered and made extensive use of deeply drilled groundwater for drinking. In The Book of Changes, originally a divination text from the Western Zhou dynasty (1046-), contains an entry describing how the ancient Chinese maintained their wells and protected their water sources.[6] A well excavated at the Hemedu excavation site was believed to have been built during the Neolithic era.[7] The well was lined by four rows of logs with a square frame attached to them at the top of the well. It is also believed that an additional 60 tiled wells southwest of Beijing were built around the year for drinking and irrigation.[7]​[8]​.

In Egypt, shadoofs and sakias are used.[9]​[10]​ The sakia is much more efficient, as it can draw water from a depth of 10 meters (compared to 3 meters for the shadoof). The sakia is the Egyptian version of the ferris wheel. Some of the oldest known wells in the world, located in Cyprus, date from 7000 to [11] Two Neolithic wells have been discovered in Israel, around one is in Atlit, on the northern coast of Israel, and the other is the Jezreel Valley.[12]​.

Wells for other purposes appeared much later, historically. The first recorded salt well was dug in the Chinese province of Sichuan about 2,250 years ago. This was the first time that ancient water well technology was successfully applied to salt exploitation and marked the beginning of the Sichuan salt mining industry. The oldest known oil wells were also drilled in China, in 347 CE. These wells had depths of up to approximately 240 m and were drilled using drill bits. attached to bamboo poles.[13]​ Oil was burned to evaporate brine and produce salt. In the 19th century, extensive bamboo pipelines connected oil wells to saltwater springs. Ancient records from China and Japan are said to contain many allusions to the use of natural gas for lighting and heating.[14]​

Traditional wells to collect water are usually located in the surroundings of houses, either in the patio of the house (such as the traditional artesian well) or in the neighborhood common area (with specific models such as the unique pozzi of the city of Venice). For safety and utility, the well is surrounded at surface level with a curb, like a parapet or parapet "Parapet (architecture)"), on which a pulley or crank is installed to raise and lower the container, usually a bucket "Bucket (container)") or bucket. A lid is also usually placed on it to prevent dirt from falling inside or possible accidents.[15]​.

In towns where, due to wastewater filtration, the water table may be contaminated and the well water is no longer drinkable, it can continue to be used for cleaning and irrigation tasks.[16]​.

There has been an archaeological reference of wells from BC. C. in Persia.

As a symbol, the well already appears in the most primitive cultures, prior to the civilizations of Antiquity.[17] Thus, for example, the controversial German musicologist Marius Schneider noted that in medicinal rites among animists, the axis or center of the process is represented by a lake or well, with whose waters the sick people wet their hands, chest and head; As aquatic signs of salvation, reeds grow at the edge of the water and shells are deposited.[18] Also the Greek goddess of agriculture, Demeter, and other classical deities are usually represented next to the edge of a well. In Christianity, the well is a symbol of salvation (within the conceptual scheme of life as a pilgrimage), the refreshing and purifying water being "a symbol of the sublime aspiration, of the silver rope that binds the palace in the center."[17]​.

In the act of drawing water from a well - as in the symbolism of fishing - the purifying process of "extracting from the depths" is read, what rises being "pure numinous content".[note 1]​ In the same way as looking at the bottom of a well, like contemplating the water of a lake are representations of the contemplative mystical act. Finally, Juan Eduardo Cirlot also notes the fact of the association of well in medieval allegories as a symbol of the soul and feminine attribute.

In the iconography of Christianity, as in that of other religions, the rim of the well is an almost recurring element, present in several well-known passages from the Old and New Testaments. The Bible, as a book written by and for a people of shepherds, the well is "the meeting place."[19]​ As a symbol it materializes not only due to its functionality and usefulness but also representing the place of living waters (culmination of the Christian revelation), which is synthesized in the passage of Christ and the Samaritan woman where Jesus "clearly expresses his messianic condition."[19]​.

In a broader cultural framework, and always through the inheritance of symbolism, the well synthesizes a triple iconography as an "axis of the representation of the Universe":

From a rich collection of proverbs, adages "Adagio (linguistics)"), idioms and sayings related to the well, they can serve as examples:[20]​.