Well

The National Monuments Service's description

In a hollow with exposed limestone pavement which slopes to S and SE with cliffs overlooking the site (H c. 2-5m) to the E and N. Named ‘Toberadub’ on the 1840 and 1916 OS 6-inch maps. According to the OS letter (1839) ‘Tobbar Duibh in the Townland of Cahirfodda’ was known as ‘the Well of the Black’ for the dark sediment found at the base which was used for dyeing wool and for the treatment of swellings of the eyes and limbs (Comber 1997, 16). O’Donovan also questions whether the well has any ‘claim to the name of Holy’ (ibid.). Named ‘Tobar an Duibh’ on Robinson’s (1977) map. On inspection in 1997 it was concluded that the well had most likely been a natural spring where two groups of bushes grow close to the cliff to the N.

Compiled by: Mary Tunney and Lynda McCormack

Date of upload: 10 May 2022

References

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

Robinson, T. 1977 (revised 1999) The Burren: a two-inch map of the uplands of north-west Clare. Map scale 1:31680. Roundstone: Folding Landscapes.