St. Annes Well

Situated on a fairly level landscape, with the small NNE-SSW Yellow River c. 40m to the W. A well is marked on the 1836 and eds of the OS 6-inch map and described in gothic lettering as St. Anne’s Well on both. Kelly (1973, 8, 10) suggests that the well could be a pre-Christian dedication to Anu, the mother of the Irish gods, which was altered to Anne in Christian times. The well is an oval hollow (dims 1.7m x 1.3m) lined with large stones. A rag tree with some old cloths attached to it was present at the well in 1973, while a trench excavated near the well produced a blue glass bead (ibid.). Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of upload: 30 March 2023

St. Anne’s Well is associated with the veneration of St. Anne, the mother of the Virgin Mary, and was historically a site of pilgrimage and healing. Traditions linked to such wells often include the offering of coins or cloth and prayers for fertility, as St. Anne is widely revered as a patron saint of childbirth.