Holy well, Tellarought, Co. Wexford

Co. Wexford |

Holy Sites & Wells

Holy well, Tellarought, Co. Wexford

In a shallow valley in County Wexford, a small holy well sits beside a minor road, marked by a plaque that reads "St. Bridget's Well.

1862." The well is rectangular in form, covered by a concrete vaulted canopy with a cross on top, and its arched opening faces northeast. What makes it quietly unusual is the local belief attached to it: the well is said to perform cures, but only if visited nine times. The number nine recurs often in Irish holy well traditions, likely rooted in pre-Christian ritual patterns that the Church absorbed rather than erased, but here the specifics of what ails the visitor, or what the cure entails, have gone unrecorded.

The 1862 date on the plaque is the only firm historical anchor the well offers. It may mark a rebuilding or formal dedication rather than the well's original establishment, since holy wells in Ireland frequently predate any Christian attribution by centuries, drawing their significance from the water source itself long before a saint's name was attached. In this case, St. Brigid, one of Ireland's three patron saints, lends her name to a great many wells across the country, particularly in Leinster, and her feast day on the first of February was itself layered onto the older Celtic festival of Imbolc. Beyond the 1862 date and the local oral tradition, the well's origins remain genuinely unknown.

The well sits roughly ten metres west of a small stream and on the eastern side of a road running northeast to southwest through the valley. The concrete canopy is the most visible marker from the road, and the cross above it is the easiest thing to look for when approaching on foot.

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Pete F
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