What is recorded here

Toberbreedia is a holy well in County Limerick where a strong spring issues from the rock. Local story claims it moved from the Bullaun, yet dense vegetation now buries the water and denies it to hungry palms. The pasture remains poorly drained and undulating, preserving the odd suggestion that BRIDE herself rejected the old spot and chose this hidden one instead.

Site of Tobar Bríde situated immediately W of a field boundary, in poorly drained, undulating pasture. The site is sheltered to N, E and S and has good views to W. Described by Ó Danachair (1955, 213) as 'a strong spring issuing from the rock…the water cures vomiting and sick stomach if taken fasting before daybreak'. Ó Danachair mentions a legend still told locally that the well moved to this spot from the location of the Bullaun (LI015-041----) in the same townland. The site is heavily obscured by dense vegetation but no longer seems to be in holy use. See attached photo taken in 1954 by Caoimhín Ó Danachair, courtesy of and © National Folklore Collection, UCD. The Photographic Collection, F025.21.00281 accessible online at www.duchas.ie/en/cbeg/17025. Compiled by: Denis Power Revised by: Caimin O'Brien Date of revised upload: 3 October 2020

Linked to Saint Brigid (Bríde), the well is associated with traditional healing practices and fertility rites. The spring’s strength and sheltered location may have contributed to its veneration as a site of spiritual and physical renewal.

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