Ritual site - holy well

The National Monuments Service's description

On a SE-facing slope, adjacent to the townland boundary between Glensleade and Baur North, in a damp field of rushes but with views over the lower damp ground to the SE. Indicated and named 'Toberinneenboy' on the 1842 and 1916 OS 6-inch maps. O’Curry (Comber 1997, 77) recorded it as dedicated to ‘St Innyee or Inghean Bhaoith (the daughter of Boetius) the great Patroness of the Dalcassians, whose memory was annually revered… on the 29th of December’. A spring well and associated pond are visible at this location. A small stone circular structure (diam. c. 3.2m; H 0.4-0.6m) (CL005-126002-) inside a larger slightly oval one (7m E-W; 6m N-S; H 0.8m) with a possible entrance at E lie 16m to the NNE and may be the well or may be a penitential station associated with it. According to local tradition (Kirby 2021) leaving an offering at the well would cure warts.

Reference:

Kirby, T. 2021 Tobar Iníon Baoith, Glensleade. The Clare Holy Wells Project Available @ https://heritage.clareheritage.org/places/holy-wells/tobar-inion-baoith-glensleade.

Compiled by: Mary Tunney and Ros Ó Maoldúin

Date of upload: 5 April 2023

References

Comber, M. (ed.) 1997 The antiquities of County Clare: John O’Donovan and Eugene Curry: Ordnance Survey Letters 1839. Clasp Press. Ennis.