# Lightwell

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{{Short description|Air shaft or atrium}}
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In [architecture](/source/architecture), a '''lightwell''',<ref group="NB">light well, light-well</ref> '''sky-well''',<ref group="NB">skywell, sky well</ref> or '''air shaft''' is an unroofed or roofed external space provided within the volume of a large building to allow [light](/source/light) and [air](/source/air) to reach what would otherwise be a dark or unventilated area. Lightwells may be lined with glazed bricks to increase the reflection of sunlight within the space. Lightwells may have sunlight reflecting mirrors on the top of light well.<ref>[https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.506.3983&rep=rep1&type=pdf] Environmental assessment of light well in high-rise apartment building | Hisashi Kotania; ∗, Masaya Narasakia, Ryuji Satob, Toshio Yamanakaa | Department of Architectural Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, Suita Osaka 565-0871, Japan | Department of Architecture, Osaka Institute of Technology, Osaka, Japan | 17 January 2002| Building and Environment 38 (2003) 283 – 289 | Size of light well (m)  13m × 12m × 62m (height)</ref>

Lightwells serve to reduce the necessity for electric lighting, add a central space within the building, and provide an internal open space for windows to give an illusion of having a view outside.

==Area or areaway==
{{main|Area (architecture)}}
A subterranean lightwell by any frontage of a building for light to a basement is also called an '''[area](/source/Area_(architecture))''' (or '''areaway''' in North American usage). This may also allow pedestrian access to the building separate from a main door.

==Ancient history==
The lightwell was used in ancient civilizations, such as the [Egyptians](/source/Ancient_Egypt)<ref>{{cite book |title= The demography of Roman Egypt|last= Bagnall|first= Roger S|author2=Frier, Bruce W |date= 2006|publisher= [Cambridge University Press](/source/Cambridge_University_Press)|location= [Cambridge](/source/Cambridge), [New York](/source/New_York_City)|isbn= 978-0-521-46123-8|oclc= 28927049}}</ref> and at the Palace of [Knossos](/source/Knossos) on [Minoan](/source/Minoan_civilization) [Crete](/source/Crete).<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.themodernantiquarian.com/site/10854/knossos.html#fieldnotes|title= Knossos|access-date=2008-05-24 |last= Hogan|first= C Michael|date= 2008-04-14|work= The Modern Antiquarian}}</ref>  There are also instances of lightwell use by the [Romans](/source/Ancient_Roman_architecture), such as the [impluvium](/source/impluvium) and [compluvium](/source/compluvium) shaft.<ref>{{cite book |title= Piscinae: Artificial Fishponds in Roman Italy|last= Higginbotham|first= James Arnold|date= 1997|publisher= [University of North Carolina Press](/source/University_of_North_Carolina_Press)|location= [Chapel Hill, NC](/source/Chapel_Hill%2C_North_Carolina)|isbn= 978-0-8078-2329-3|oclc= 35172558}}</ref> In traditional [Chinese architecture](/source/Chinese_architecture), the 天井 (sky well) also exists.<ref>{{cite web |last1=You |first1=Xiaoying |title=How ancient 'skywells' are keeping Chinese homes cool |url=https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20230712-how-ancient-skywells-are-keeping-chinese-homes-cool |website=Future Planet |publisher=BBC |access-date=14 July 2023 |date=12 July 2023}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Commons category|Lightwells}}
*[Atrium](/source/Atrium_(architecture))
*[Clerestory](/source/Clerestory)
*[Skylight](/source/Skylight_(window))
*[Light tube](/source/Light_tube)
*[Ventilation shaft](/source/Ventilation_shaft)
*[Daylighting](/source/Daylighting_(architecture))

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=NB}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Environmental technology}}

Category:Lighting
Category:Solar architecture
Category:Windows

{{Architecturalelement-stub}}

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Lightwell](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightwell) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightwell?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.