What is recorded here

St Declas Well is a small, rectangular water hole in a narrow field beside a Cork road, marked Tobernadeecla on an 1842 map and still ringed by votive offerings. A low stone wall and an overhanging bush dressed in rags suggest the water has long been treated as more than drinkable, perhaps a place where people asked for healing, memory or mercy. The well does not need grand claims; it keeps its purpose in the repeated human gesture of returning with something small and leaving it behind the stones.

Named 'Tobernadeecla' on 1842 OS 6-inch map. In small field on W side of road. Access to field by gate from road and to well area by stile. Rectangular well enclosed and partially covered by low stone surround. Votive offerings surround well and rags adorn over-hanging bush. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Cork. Volume 4: North Cork' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 2000). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload/revision: 14 January 2009 Images provided by and copyright of Amanda Clarke 2016-2022 https://holywellscorkandkerry.com/

St Declas is a lesser-known early Irish saint, traditionally associated with healing wells in Cornwall and Devon, where her name appears in Cornish as "Decla" or "Declas." The well at Imphrick is linked to her and is believed to have been a site of pilgrimage and healing rituals, particularly for skin ailments and general well-being.

The monument record does not grant public access. Check the route and ask the landowner before entering private land.