St. Fechins Well

In damp low-lying pasture, c. 150m S of the Owenbeg River and incorporated into a field boundary. A D-shaped well (0.8m NW-SE; 0.8m NE-SW; D 0.4m) recessed into rising ground SE-NW and faced with stone (H 1.5m). A flat concrete slab, on which the visitor stands, defines the straight side. Outside the slab, a NW-SE mortared stone wall intersects with a curving wall to completely enclose the well. A series of steps built into this wall allows access to the well. Another holy well (SL026-015----) dedicated to St Fechin is c. 1.6km to E in Kilnamanagh townland. St Fechin's church and bed (SL026-011001-; SL026-011002-) are c. 200m to S and St Fechin's stone (SL026-012002-) is c. 350m to E. There are four other wells associated with St Fechin in the vicinity (SL026-015----; SL026-086----; SL026-151----; SL033-062----). The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Sligo' compiled by Ursula Egan, Elizabeth Byrne, Mary Sleeman with Sheila Ronan and Connie Murphy (Dublin Stationery Office, 2005). Date of upload: 18 January 2008

Linked to St. Fechin (or Fiacre), an Irish monastic saint associated with healing and pilgrimage sites, the well is traditionally visited for its supposed curative properties, particularly for skin ailments and general well-being. The site reflects a long-standing tradition of holy wells as places of devotion and ritual in early Christian Ireland.