Sites and Monuments Record · Ireland
Ritual site - holy well
Achonry, County Sligo, Ireland
The record
- Townland
- Achonry
- County
- Sligo
- Country
- Ireland
- First-edition OS map
- Not indicated
- Latest-edition OS map
- Toberfinane
- Coordinates
- 54.07722, -8.65281
- SMR number
- SL032-188006-
Slide toward Today to fade the historical sheet and see the modern map underneath.
David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries
Shown on 4 historical map sheets, the earliest the 1790 "Composite: Ireland." (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries).
This record in the National Monuments Service's Historic Environment Viewer ↗
The National Monuments Service's description
In wet pasture, in the S corner of a field and c. 100m SE of Achonry cathedral (SL032-188002-) and graveyard (SL032-188003-). The well consists of an oval pit (0.8m NW-SE; 1.3m NE-SW) enclosed by a partially collapsed moss and sod-covered stone wall (Wth 0.8m; int. H 0.8m; ext. H 0.3m). Along the E-SW arc, where the well abuts the N side of a penitential cairn (SL032-188007-), the wall forms a stone facing (H 0.3m) against the base of the cairn. According to local information in 2002, the traditional 'pattern' day is still observed and is held on August 15th. O'Rorke (1878, 417) noted that 'patterns' were held on Saturday with as many as 'two or three hundred present on the Saturday that immediately preceded the 15th of August'. The well is named after St Finian of Clonard who with St Nathy is said to have founded a monastery here (ITA).
The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Sligo' compiled by Ursula Egan, Elizabeth Byrne, Mary Sleeman with Sheila Ronan and Connie Murphy (Dublin Stationery Office, 2005).
Date of upload: 18 January 2008
Nearby in the register
- Penitential stationunder 1 mi
- Altarunder 1 mi
- Field systemunder 1 mi
- Cathedralunder 1 mi
Other entries of the same register within about three miles of this one, by straight line.