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Holy Wells of Cork & Kerry

not all who wander are lost

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Mass Rock

Exploring around the M8

8th May 2017 7 Comments

A very fruitful three days in East and Mid Cork enjoying a spot of well hunting. A fine variety was discovered, this little crop lurking on either side of the M8. St Cuain’s Well, Tobairin Cuain, Knockraha This well sounded intriguing: I liked both names – Knockraha (hill of the forts) and the unusual and […]

Filed Under: East Cork Tagged With: ballaun stone Ballybrack Black & Tans Blessed Virgin Mary Cameron Regiment; cillin Cork No 1 Brigade Doonpeter General Glanmire Knockraha Mass path' Mass Rock Midsummer pilgrim crosses quartz ringfort Schools' Folklore Project shrine Sing Sing Prison St Cuain St John St Patrick War of Independence Winter Solstice

An Arboreal Theme

9th December 2016 Leave a Comment

Fuelled with coffee at Budds in Ballydehob we headed off on the R586 towards Bandon, five wells in the GPS. Holy Well, Killowen First stop, a sharp left after Murragh and up an unexpected glen, full of dense foliage and the sound of dripping water. We parked in a layby and Ger just happened to […]

Filed Under: West Cork Tagged With: alder tree ballaun stone Blessed Virgin Mary carvings Christigram Eyes General Ginni Swanton Irish Tourist Association Survey 1944 King of Sunday Knockavilla Mass Rock Murragh Newcestown ringfort rounds Schools' Folklore Project Warts yew tree

Some thoughts on Bullauns

25th November 2016 9 Comments

Travelling around looking for holy wells, as you do, it is remarkable how often a bullaun is encountered – either situated near a well or sometimes described as the well itself.  A bullaun is, at its most simple, a man-made hollow carved in a rock. They crop up all over the place and there are […]

Filed Under: Other West Cork Tagged With: cupmarks font ironworking; Jack Roberts Mass Rock Penal Times pillar stone ringfort stoup

Well Hunting around Ballinspittle

11th November 2016 18 Comments

A crisp clear morning in Kinsale, we had four wells on the agenda on our way home. First stop Lady’s Well, just over the bridge at Ringrone.  Lady’s Well, Tobar Mhuire, Ringrone The well looked to lie quite close to the road in pasture. According to the Archaeological Inventory, it no longer had holy use […]

Filed Under: West Cork Tagged With: Aeongus the Culdee Anne Bonney Ballinspittle Bullen family BVM clochán Courtaparteen Diarmuid Mac Cerbhaill Eyes famine village Féilire of Aeongus grotto ITA Cork Kilroan King of Sunday Kinsale Lorrha Mass Rock pebbles Ringrone Sir John de Courcy St Ruadháin Tara Warts

In Search of Cats around Toe Head

7th November 2016 Leave a Comment

The day being fine we set out for Toe Head, a small peninsula somewhere below Skibbereen roughly towards Castletownsend. There were three wells on the agenda and I was not very hopeful about finding any of them. Once off the main Castletownsend road the roads become quite challenging but highly scenic: tiny bumpy roads with […]

Filed Under: West Cork Tagged With: ballaun stone Bronze Age cup marks Eyes General Jack Roberts Mass Rock quartz ringfort rock art Schools' Folklore Project St Bartholomew

Lady’s well, Ballycurrany

21st October 2016 6 Comments

There are but two holy wells in this parish, one in Ballycrana and the other in Templeboden, both of which are very well kept. The people still visit them on the week preceding the twelfth of August and perform three visits around the well. We go to the one in Ballycrana which is in Mr […]

Filed Under: East Cork Tagged With: Ague beech tree Blessed Virgin Mary Cork City Museum Eyes faction fighting Feast of the Assumption frog General grotto Mass Rock pattern day Penal Times rounds Schools' Folklore Project

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