We report sets of precise and reproducible measurements on the static press
ure at the bottom of a granular column. We make a quantitative analysis of
the pressure saturation when the column height is increased. We evidence a
great sensitivity of the measurements with the global packing fraction and
the eventual presence of shear bands at the boundaries. We also show the li
mit of the classical Janssen model and discuss these experimental results u
nder the scope of recently proposed theoretical frameworks.