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Sites and Monuments Record · Ireland

Ritual site - holy well

Drumatober, County Galway, Ireland

Ordnance Survey six-inch map, 2nd edition (1888–1915) covering the location of Ritual site - holy well, Drumatober, County Galway, with a pin at the register's coordinates
Ordnance Survey six-inch map, 2nd edition (1888–1915), covering this location. Courtesy of the National Library of Scotland. The pin is ours, placed from the register's coordinates.

The record

Townland
Drumatober
County
Galway
Country
Ireland
First-edition OS map
Holy Well
Latest-edition OS map
Holy Well
Coordinates
53.19197, -8.37275
SMR number
GA107-058002-

Slide toward Today to fade the historical sheet and see the modern map underneath.

David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

4 historical maps cover this location, the earliest the 1790 map "Composite: Ireland." (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries).

Historical maps covering this location

  • 1790 · Composite: Ireland. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
  • 1857 · Ireland (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
  • 1869 · Ireland. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
  • 1891 · Ireland 16 (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)

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This record in the National Monuments Service's Historic Environment Viewer ↗

The National Monuments Service's description

Immediately S of a children’s burial ground (GA107-058001-). This natural spring well is known locally as ‘Our Lady’s Well’ and is visited each May. It is defined by an oval drystone well chamber (1.1m E-W; 0.9m N-S; D 0.8m) around which lies a scatter of loose stones (Wth 0.9m), most likely field-clearance material. A small alcove built into the S sector of the well contained religious icons and money, and more were also scattered around the W sector. The well was dry on inspection and, according to local information, the water source had moved near the large tree just W of the well. A number of natural depressions in the nearby rock outcrop are known locally as ‘St Brendan’s knees’.

Compiled by: Galway Archaeological Survey, UCG

Date of upload: 28 March 2023

Nearby in the register

Other entries of the same register within about three miles of this one, by straight line.

Sites and Monuments Record data: National Monuments Service, Government of Ireland, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Record text is reproduced unchanged. National Monuments Service, Government of Ireland · CC BY 4.0
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