It is the only construction of its kind, in good state of preservation, on Madeira Island. It is located in the mountains south of Pico do Areeiro, next to regional road no. 202, on the left bank of the Ribeira de Santa Luzia, at an altitude of 1630 meters.
The construction references of this example date back to the year 1813, ordered to be built by João Baptista Gambaro (Baxixa), an Italian-born entrepreneur dedicated to the bakery industry and the production of sorbets. At the time, the well was the only way to obtain and preserve ice, storing the snow and hail that occasionally fell on the high mountains of Funchal, between winter and early spring. The use of this reservoir continued until the first artificial systems for ice production appeared in Funchal, in the late first half of the last century.
The ice was mainly destined for hospitals, hotels, and the production of sorbets in the Funchal area, and its transport was carried out on foot, in a journey that began in the early hours of the morning, mostly using paths in the mountains of São Roque and Santo António. The carriers used sacks made of animal skins, wrapped in straw and placed in wicker baskets.
The visible part of the Poço da Neve is the covering of the reservoir, built with well-cut basalt blocks, arranged in the shape of a hemisphere similar to an igloo, which protected the ice from rain and sun exposure, contributing to its preservation. The reservoir for ice storage is excavated in the ground in a cylindrical shape, with a diameter of 7 meters and a depth of 8 meters, corresponding to an approximate capacity of 308 m³.
