What is recorded here

Shellins Well is a holy well in County Laois, Ireland. It is a shallow two-metre pool beside a stream in low-lying ground, marked only on the 1909 OS map. People may have drunk, washed or prayed there before the well lost its name and became a small water hole again.

Marked only on the 1909 edition of the OS 6-inch map. In a low-lying area. A shallow pool of water (diam. 2m), to W of a stream, indicates the site. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Laois' (Dublin Stationery Office, 1995) compiled by P. David Sweetman, Olive Alcock and Bernie Moran. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 17 December 2007

Linked to Saint Fillan (or Shellan), a 7th-century Irish saint associated with healing wells in Munster. The well's name suggests a tradition of water-based healing rituals, common in early Christian Ireland.

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