What is recorded here

Illancreeve island on Maghera strand in County Donegal, Ireland, may have hidden a holy well on its south side. No stone, basin or water mark remains visible to prove the claim. The absence does not erase the memory. It suggests people once believed that place could give back clarity, ease or warning. They may have knelt at the tide line, poured water over wounded skin or left small offerings before leaving. The sea and rot have removed the proof, but the story still points to a time when ordinary stone was treated as alive.

A local tradition remembers a 'holy well' on the S side of Illancreeve island on Maghera strand. No trace of this could be found. The above description was derived from the 'Archaeological Survey of County Donegal. A description of the field antiquities of the County from the Mesolithic Period to the 17th century.' Compiled by: Brian Lacey with Eamon Cody, Claire Cotter, Judy Cuppage, Noel Dunne, Vincent Hurley, Celie O'Rahilly, Paul Walsh and Seán Ó Nualláin (Lifford: Donegal County Council, 1983). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated. Date of upload: 22 September 2008

Linked to unspecified saintly or folkloric tradition, the holy well was believed to possess curative properties, typical of such sites in Irish tradition. No specific saint or recorded ritual is associated with the well, and its physical remains have not been identified.

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