Ritual site - holy well

The National Monuments Service's description

20m N of Glen River and NNW of bridge over this river. It is on the S side of a driveway to a two storey house with old out buildings. The land on either side of the driveway, including the area around the well, is landscaped. The well is a circular, stone-lined structure (diam. 2.5m N-S; 2.2m E-W) with a stone step down to the water in the NE sector. On the S side of the well there is a beech tree which is leaning badly to the S. The well is presently covered by a wooden frame with a metal grid. Though the well is known locally as being a holy well there are no devotions practiced here any more, no religious relics at the site. The dry-stone walling around the well is 0.8m H and is composed of a mixture of large and small rough blocks of stone. The rim of the well on the N and E sides has been covered with concrete. There is water in the well 0.2m above the silt which appears to be at least 0.2m D. According to Power (1908, 4) the well was called 'Tobberessay' from Tobar Iosa, in English 'Jesus' Well' and was 'a remarkable well of great size and volume, at which "rounds" and votive offerings were formerly made. The offerings here took the peculiar form of tufts of hair cut from the pilgrim's heads'.

Compiled by: Jean Farrelly

Date of upload: 26 August 2011

References

Power, P. 1908 Placenames of the Decies. Journal of the Waterford and Southeast of Ireland Archaeological Society 11, 1-34, 45-78, 135-43 and 179-210.