Ritual site - holy well

The National Monuments Service's description

The precise location of the 'Fairy Well' within the townland of Tymon North, in the parish of Tallaght has not been identified. In 1837 the Ordnance Survey Letters recorded that' there is a little hill south of the castle [Tymon Castle DU022-007----] called the Fairy Bank and a very good well a little to the north called the Fairy Well' (Herity 2001, 32). This is probably the same curative well described by Daly (1957, 22) as follows; 'On a piece of high ground between Tallaght and Balrothery was once a well, covered in, its position being marked by an old thorn bush. In years long past, a story was told of a farmer, named Ledwich, who owned the ground round the Holy well. Being greatly annoyed by the people frequently breaking down his fences in order to reach the well, he ordered his men to bring a cartload of slaughterhouse manure and throw it into the well, in order to spoil it. Not one of his men would obey him, so he did it himself, thereby destroying the Holy well. Retribution soon overtook him ; as he was driving away from the spot his horse bolted ; he was thrown from the cart and his leg was'.

Revised by: Caimin O'Brien

Date of revised upload: 20 April 2023

References

Herity, M. (ed.) 2001 Ordnance Survey Letters: Dublin. Dublin. Four Masters Press.

Daly, M. 1957 Curative wells in old Dublin. Dublin Historical Record 17, 13-24.