No

Step 1: Torricelli's experiment demonstrates that atmospheric pressure can support a column of mercury in a barometer. The height of the mercury column is maintained due to the balance between atmospheric pressure and the weight of the mercury.

Step 2: If the open end of the barometric tube is placed in a vessel containing water instead of mercury, the density of water (approximately 1000 kg/m³) is much lower than that of mercury (approximately 13600 kg/m³).

Step 3: The pressure exerted by a column of liquid is given by the formula: $P = h imes ho imes g$, where $P$ is the pressure, $h$ is the height of the liquid column, $ ho$ is the density of the liquid, and $g$ is the acceleration due to gravity.

Step 4: Since water's density is much less than mercury, to exert the same pressure at the open end of the barometer, the height of the water column would need to be greater. This would be significantly higher than the height of the mercury that normally stands at about 760 mm.

Step 5: The low density of water would result in the mercury not rising in the tube to the level needed to counterbalance atmospheric pressure. Therefore, the experiment will not function correctly due to the mismatch in densities.

Therefore, the answer is: No.