The grand staircase inside Castel Savoia, a castle built for Queen Margherita of Savoy in Gressoney-Saint-Jean, Italy, between 1899 and 1904. [1638 x 2048]

Castel Savoia is a historic residence situated in Gressoney-Saint-Jean, Italy, near the village of Òbre Biel. One of the most surprising elements of the castle is most certainly the wooden staircase made of “choice durmast oak” designed by the cabinetmaker to the Royal House, Michele Dellera. The staircase was crafted in a curved double helix shape with carved panels depicting eagles, flowers and leaves intertwined on the handrail and, at the base of the first flight, two winged lions with the Savoy coat of arms on their chests. Its assembly and structural elements were entrusted to the steel manufacturing workshop in Turin managed by its founder Guidetto Pichetto di Veglio Biellese, located in Corso Vittorio Emanuele II. They worked in tandem with the sculptor, supplying iron of various types, skilfully hidden from view. The staircase was built in 1904 at extremely great expense: 19,858 lire to which 8.5 lire was added for every one of the 252 days of labour.