What is recorded here

Lough Mackeenlaun is a drained marsh now, but local memory insists the lake itself was the well. Pilgrims walked this wet ground in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, dipping into water that has vanished into soil. Two cross stones and a ruined hermitage still mark the edge, waiting for the annual July rounds to give the forgotten water shape again.

In undulating pasture, on a level marshy area. The site of a well is indicated on the 1897 OS 6-inch map, c. 40m SE of Lough Mackeenlaun. There are no visible remains of a well at this location. The lake, which has been drained, has become a marshy area. O'Brien (1970, 22-3) recorded that according to local information 'the lake was the well'. According to local information, the lake was a major pilgrimage site, particularly in the 19th and early 20th centuries and pilgrims took water from it. 'Rounds' which have been revived in recent years, take place here annually on the 7/8 July. Two cross-inscribed stones (KE108-004002-, KE108-004003-) and the remains of a hermitage (KE108-003----) lie immediately to the E of the lake. See attached colour photograph courtesy of Amanda Clarke. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Kerry. Volume I: South-West Kerry' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 2009). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 30 May 2011

This remains an important historical record, but the official description says the monument is no longer visible or has been destroyed. The monument record does not grant public access. Check the route and ask the landowner before entering private land.