For a well with so few physical remains however, its documentary remains are substantial, and for the bulk of this article we are indebted to the far ranging paper written in the early 2000s by Tristran Gray Hulse [1]. This piece not only explores the history of Ffynnon Ddeier, but considers the well cult across Wales in general, knocking more than a few myths on their heads as it goes.

Deier, the saint after whom the well is named, is alternatively given as Deifr or possibly most accurately as Diheufyr. For the purpose of this article we shall refer to him as Diheufyr, although retain the accepted spelling of Deier in naming the well.

As previously indicated, he is considered by the histories to be a brother of Marchell and Tyrnog. Little is known of their lives, though it is probable, given the proximity of their foundations, that they were part of a local Clwyd family. Baring Gould and Fisher record that they were originally at the monastery at Bangor On Dee and later ended up at the monastery on Bardsey Island

Diheufyr’s well grew to be known as a prominent healing well in the area, and customs similar to those practiced at nearby Ffynnon Degla grew up, involving walking around the well a certain number of times carrying various types of domestic fowl. The well gained a reputation for curing illnesses in children. Gray Hulse notes that in the earliest accounts of the well these customs are not related, countering the notion that they may be remnants of a pre-Christian practice, suggesting rather that they became associated with the well only in the later medieval period.

He further surmises that the account in the some versions of the life of Winefride, which suggests that after leaving Holywell she visited first Diheufyr at Bodfari and then Sadwrn at Henllan on her journey to Gwytherin may be evidence that the well was then a significant stopping off point on an important pilgrimage route, since given the timescales of their births Winefride would never have actually encountered Diheufyr.

Ffynnon Ddeier was originally situated in a field some 100 yards to the north of its present location, around 300 yards from the church which is dedicated to St Stephen rather than Diheufyr. It was filled in and piped to its present location in the late 19th century to provide a water supply for the area. Gray Hulse quotes from an unpublished note from 1885 which states:

St Deifar’s (sic) well has been drained and no longer exists. It was surrounded by masonry with steps to go down into it. The walls were high and a platform ran completely round the well so as to enable people to walk around it. Its water was bright and clear and being several yards square it was broad and deep enough to bathe in.

A Clwyd Powys Archaeological Trust (CPAT) Report [2] says that it shows signs of having been restored during the past 20 years. They also quote correspondence reporting that “locally it retains its reputation as a holy well.”

At present it can be seen as a brick and stone built square chamber, a piece of slate, carved with graffiti, set into the back wall partly protects the chamber. Gray Hulse and CPAT both refer to an inactive tap, which we couldn’t see, probably concealed below the slate and buried under the leaves and mud that fill the well.

Gray Hulse also comments on another well, found inside a local pub, the Dinorben Arms beside the church, which in the late 20th century was widely and inaccurately advertised as being the lost holy well of St Diheufyrr. Unfortunately the inn closed down in around 2007 and remains empty, so this imposter could not be seen.

Baring Gould and Fisher note another well, Ffynnon Dyfr at Abergele, named possibly after the same saint. St Diheufyr’s festival is given as either the 7th or 8th March.

[1] Gray Hulse, Tristan (2002) The Documentation of Ffynnon Ddeier: Some Problems Reconsidered.  Living Spring Journal.

[2] Silvester, Bob and Richard Hankinson (2004) Early Medieval Ecclesiastical and Burial sites in Mid and NE Wales. Field Assessment in CPAT Report 612.

Ffynnon Wen lies in the shadow of Gop Cairn, a massive hilltop prehistoric mound between the villages of Gwaenysgor and Trelawnyd a little to the east of Prestatyn.

 The mound, and the discoveries of bones from  pleistocene animals including bison,reindeer, Irish elk, hyena, woolly rhinoceros and arctic lemming in nearby caves point to evidence of human occupation of the area for thousands of years, sustained possibly by the water source at Ffynnon Wen. Legends linking the location with Boudicca’s last battle against the Romans add to the mystery of the place.

 In keeping with its links with unwritten prehistory, there is very little recorded evidence of the uses and development of Ffynnon Wen. My only source is the 1912 record of the Royal Commission on Ancient Monuments in Wales. This speculates that

 Though no traditions exist respecting the cult associated with the spring, or its popularity, there can be no doubt that the name signifies the Holy Well (‘gwyn’ mutated by the feminine ‘ffynnon’ into ‘wen’=blessed) and denotes its primarily religious character.

 In a footnote they add that the well Ffynnon Gwaynysgor mentioned in 1698 by Edward Lhuyd is “unquestionably” Ffynnon Wen. One may speculate that, given the name is not recorded by Lhuyd, it may have been added at the time the well was being built up by the local landowner to give it some sense of spurious historical importance. Another Ffynnon Wen at nearby Henllan was given a similar treatment at a similar period.

The present structure, such as it is, represents the remains of a probably eighteenth century bath house built possibly for the family of nearby Cop’rieni Hall, now Gop Farm. There was a stone enclosed and roofed well house about five feet square with steps down into the water and an adjacent dressing room.

 These buildings, already ruinous when recorded in 1910, were virtually demolished soon afterwards by the tenant farmer, tired of a constant stream of visitors to the well.

 The square stone lined well basin remains, surrounded by stone work from the demolished buildings. The overflow from the well now creates a rectangular pool, bound by a stone and earth bank, probably a remnant of an earlier hedge or wall.

 The Clwyd Powys Archaeological Trust record for the site on the Archwilio database states that the well chamber was covered over by a late slab when seen in the 1980s. This slab is now removed, and possibly lies broken in pieces by the well. A large tree beside the well is further affecting the stonework.

During the winter, what remains could be seen clearly, however in summer the site is hidden by nettles and brambles as Ffynnon Wen is slowly drawn back into the unrecorded prehistory of the surrounding countryside.

Ff Wen is on private land not open to the public, although a public footpath runs close to it. All photos were taken from outside the fenced off area.

St Marcella’s Well
There are some wells high up in snow covered mountains, others lie in sun dappled, tree lined valleys. Some wells are so long forgotten that their location will never again be known, whilst other wells lie buried deep beneath roundabouts on the Denbigh bypass. Ffynnon Farchell, the holy well of St Marchell or Marcella, the Latinised form by which she is usually referred to, falls firmly into this final category.

Marchell was a daughter of Hawystl Gloff and Tywanwedd. She and two of her brothers, Deifyr and Tyrnog arrived in the area in the early 7th century; reputedly following the destruction of the great monastery at Bangor is y Coed by Ethelfrith in 613. They each set up neighbouring cells. Deifyr’s eventually became the parish of Bodfari and Tyrnog’s the parish of Llandyrnog. Marchell’s own parish was known as Llanfarchell up until the fourteenth century at which time Denbigh began to develop where it is now. Other of her brothers travelled further afield establishing churches on Anglesey.

The image of Marchell above is from a recently restored fifteenth century stained glass window in the church at Llandyrnog.

The guidebook to St Marcella’s church paints the fanciful picture of her arrival:

“Here on this very spot we can picture her raising her little shelter of twigs and osiers, her food such as she could gather from herbs, roots and berries and her drink, water of the spring which henceforth bore the name of Marcella’s Well or Ffynnon Farchell.” [1]

The present church dates from the fourteenth century, although the thirteenth century tower remains from an earlier building. Over time, with the movement of the population further west it has at times fallen into disuse and disrepair. During the Civil War it was used for stabling, and in the mid 1800s Lewis commented:

The ancient parochial church, dedicated to St. Marcellus, and now in a very dilapidated condition, is situated at Whitchurch, about a mile from the town, from which place the rectory was transferred by act of parliament to Denbigh, which was made the head of the parish. [2]

The church was restored in 1908 and is now in regular use. Its characteristic colour, being covered in white plaster, stands out in the landscape, and gives the area its name of Whitchurch (White church) or Eglwys Wen.

The well was located some 400 yards to the west of the church. It was recorded by Edward Lhuyd in his inventory of 1699.

“Ffynnon Fachell, near Whitchurch which is thought to be the Saint’s Well”

The uncertainty, even at this time, suggests that any traditions associated with the well were starting to become lost.

Eighteenth and nineteenth century writers, such as Pennant and Lewis, fail to mention it at all, suggesting again that most local tradition concerning healing traditions at the well had faded. However some memories of the significance of the well must have survived even at this period. Its use, maybe for  bringing luck or as a wishing well are  recorded by the Royal Commission on Ancient Monuments description in 1914.

The son of the old man who told me of the well informed me that as a boy he used to visit the well early in the morning after the great Denbigh fairs; and always found a number of coins which had been thrown into the well by passers-by. Once he discovered a half crown. [3]

The well finally dried up when the spring that fed it was cut during the construction of the Denbigh and Ruthin railway line in the late 1850s, so that by the time of the Royal Commission vsit in 1912  they reported that

There is no trace of it at present, except the channel which took the water away. [3]

The site of the well did continue to be recorded  on Ordnance Survey maps up until the 1960s. This would suggest that it thus survived the building of the Myddleton Park housing estate, before it eventually vanished under the line of the bypass.

In visiting the well now the location identified below was based on these OS mapping records.

Let us assume that this represents Ffynnon Farchell, St Marcella’s Well.

Then our best estimate of where it was is as shown in the photographs below, just beside the roundabout on the bypass where you turn off towards Whitchurch

Yes, it is still there below see, just by the roadside

The image below is the church of St Marcella as viewed from the location of her holy well.

St Marcella’s feast day is celebrated on September 5th.

[1] R M (Bobi ) Owen (2010) St Marcella’s Church Denbigh – Guidebook
[2] Samuel Lewis(fourth edition, 1849) A Topographical Dictionary of Wales
[3] Royal Commission on Ancient and Historic Monuments (1914) An Inventory of the Ancient Monuments in Wales and Monmouth – Vol 4 County of Denbigh.

St Peris remains an enigma. Legend has it that he was a Cardinal in Rome, but his name is as little known there as it is in Wales. Baring-Gould and Fisher, struggling to find a genealogy for him suggest that he may have been one of the sons of Hedig ab Glannog who, having lost their lands by the Lavan Sands to flood took up sainthood as an alternative career, first at Bangor on Dee and later at Bardsey Island. This would make him a brother of Celynin whose church and well are found further east at Llangelynin. Peris’s name is remembered only in this area, where the church at Nant Peris and another at Llangian is named after him.

His well is a couple of hundred yards to the north east of the church, lying at the base of a small rocky outcrop in the garden of Tynyffynnon, the house that was the traditional home of the well guardian.

It remains well kept, the present construction dating probably from the seventeenth century. A small stone lined basin, about four feet square, with stone benches all around it, and a dry stone wall surrounding, built up to ground level behind the well. On the back wall three niches are formed within the stone work to hold offerings.

Water flows out under the wall towards the south of the well, forming a small stream across the garden, large stones are tumbled over the point where the water flows out, possibly evidence of former building, although it is said that the well itself was never roofed.

The well was traditionally resorted to for healing and was said to be effective for rickety children and scrofulous and rheumatic people who drank the water or bathed in the well. Two fish were kept in the well. If they emerged during bathing then the cure would be successful, if they remained hidden in the stone work then the visit would be in vain. Needless to say, those seeking a cure learned to try to tempt the fish out with pieces of bread sprinkled on the water before bathing.

The well was clearly popular and widely resorted to before the mid eighteenth century. Offerings from visitors were placed in a box inside the church, and at the end of each year the amount collected was sufficient to pay the Parish Clerk’s salary. However, towards the end of the eighteenth century its use for healing had significantly declined although the traditions of the well were remembered in a more adulterated fashion. In 1778 Pennant wrote on his visit to Nant Peris

“Here is to be seen the well of the saint, inclosed with a wall. The Sybil of the place attends, and divines your fortune by the appearance or non-appearance of a little fish, which lurks in some of its holes” [1]

In 1851 Catherall wrote

“A poor woman who lives in a cottage near the spring has a few pence given to her by strangers for showing one or two large trout which she feeds in the well.” [2]

A terrier of 1814 also notes the decline

There is also an alms box in the church, the key of which is kept by the wardens and into which the 6d and 4d pieces were formerly put very frequently by persons who either bathed their children or came themselves for the purpose in St Peris’s Well. These small offerings to the Saint amounted at the end of the year to a considerable sum, but at present they are very trifling.” [3]

The tradition of the fish was, however, maintained into the twentieth century. The practice was that two fish should be maintained in the well, a tradition said to date back to the time of Peris himself. When one fish died, the remaining fish lived alone in the well until it in turn died, whereupon two new fish were introduced.

Baring Gould and Fisher state that the fish might be expected to live for up to 50 years and that two new fish were added to the well in 1896

“The last of the two fish put into the well about fifty years previously died in August 1896. It had been blind for some time. It measured 17 inches and was buried in the garden adjoining the well.” [4]

The fish were passionately guarded by the villagers, when once a fish was stolen from the well the perpetrator was hounded and forced to return it.

I don’t believe that there are any fish there today. I haven’t seen any reference made to them and certainly, perhaps unluckily, none were seen during our visit.

We were unable to visit the church, it was locked and there was no information on where to find a key. The only signs of life being the sheep retained to keep the church yard neat and tidy.

St Peris’s Day is celebrated on December 11th.

We would like to thank the present occupant of Tynyfynnon, no longer a Sybil collecting pieces of silver, who gave us permission to visit the well.

[1] Thomas Pennant (1778) Tours in Wales
[2] Catherall (1851) Wanderings in North Wales
[3] quoted in Baring Gould and Fisher(1908) Lives of the British Saints
[4] Baring Gould and Fisher(1908) Lives of the British Saints

Chalybeate springs are noted for their high mineral content, in particular iron, and were resorted to for health cures. First identified and named in the late fifteenth century, from the Latin chalybs, steel, the popularity of chalybeate wells spread, reaching its peak in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Tunbridge Wells chalybeate spring was identified around 1606, and the spas at Cheltenham, Buxton and Harrogate are all noted chalybeate springs. During the nineteenth century the popularity of such wells began to decline, as other cures took their place. It is recorded however that the young Princess Victoria regularly drank chalybeate spring water during a visit to Tunbridge.

The existence of chalybeate water at Ffynnon Cegin Arthur was known from the sixteenth century, although when Thomas Pennant visited in the late eighteenth century its use had clearly declined.

“To the east (of Dinas Dinorwig) is a strong chalybeate water, formerly in much repute. It is called Ffynnon Cegin Arthur or The Water of Arthur’s Kitchen and is the source of Aber Cegin which falls into the sea between Bangor and Penrhyn [1]

The well is mentioned only in passing as the source of the River Cegin in Lewis’s 1849 Topographical Dictionary of Wales [2] but it found new fame with the publication of the booklet Ffynnon Cegin Arthur in 1858 by Arthur Wynn Williams, a local doctor practicing in London who had used the water to treat a number of his patients. A normal dose would be to drink about half a pint, several times a day. The not so pleasant taste of the water meant that patients would have to suffer for their cure. The waters, high in iron, lime, magnesium, sodium and nitrogen were claimed efficacious in treating blood weaknesses, joint pains and haemorrhoids.[4]

The booklet, written in Welsh, not only provided an analysis of the mineral content of the water and recommendations of its use in health cures, but also gave a history of the well and of ancient remains in the immediately surrounding area, part factual and part built upon the mythology connecting it with druidical history and with King Arthur, invoking a mystical past to add to the public attractiveness of the spring. He noted too that a sick pig had been cured after receiving the waters further demonstrating its curative powers.

In translating the well’s name Cegin Arthur as Arthur’s Kitchen enables a link to be drawn to King Arthur, whose memory is invoked by the names of a wide range of features across the region preserving the belief that the original of the Arthurian legend originated in Wales  This tradition referred to by Williams was reiterated by Myrddin Fardd in 1908

This spring is on a farm called Hendref, in the parish of Llanddeiniolen. It is considered that it received its name from the belief that the oil which floated on its surface was venison fat, which, it was thought, was brought there by the streams which flowed through the kitchen ogf the famous Prince Arthur, one of the imaginary heroes of the Welsh of old, and from there down to today, many healing virtues are imputed to it. [3]

However, an alternative translation of “cegin” is “ridge” giving an alternative, more prosaic, geographical explanation to the origin of the name.

Following publication of Williams’s book, the popularity of the spring grew, and for a short while a new industry grew up around it. Maps from the late Victorian period show an array of buildings around the well that may have been used to accommodate visitors and bathers, and also bottling of the water for sale. The nearby Y Felinheli (Port Dinorwic) railway station on the Bangor to Caernarfon line which opened in 1852 and provided improved visitor access to the site.

A Caernarfon based company KANSCO,  King Arhur’s Natural Springs Company, was set up to bottle and to distribute the water. A surviving labelled bottle is preserved at Gwynedd Museum – (follow the link for picture and more details). The water was said to be a deep red in colour, having a very oily taste. It is said that up to four baths were provided one the site in which visitors may immerse themselves in the water. [4]

The remains of these buildings, now reduced to ruins, stand to a maximum of around five to six courses high and can still be seen around the spring, as can a number of tall pieces of slate, set into the ground, which may have formed a perimeter fence around the site.

The spring itself is now a square brick lined hole about three feet square. It still contained water on our visit, although whether this was spring water or rain water was difficult to tell, it was relatively clear in colour. Other fairiy recent pictures show it covered with a number of heavy slate slabs, however when we saw it these had been removed and lay scattered about the site.

The land in the past was reported to be very marshy. This has apparently been drained to a great extent by the forestry operations that are now carried out around the well.

[1] Pennant (1778) Tours in Wales
[2] Lewis (1849) Topographical Dictionary of Wales
Full details of [1] and [2] on references page
[3] Myrddin Fardd (1908) Llen Gwerin Sir Gaernarfon.– quoted and translated in Ceridwen Lloyd-Morgan – Arthurian Literature:Celtic Arthurian Material (2004)
[4] Cymdeithas Ffynhonnau Cymru website article on Ff Cegin Arthur

The church at Clynnog is notably much larger than a village of its size would normally require. The earlier St Beuno’s chapel adjoined to the church, is said to occupy the site of Beuno’s own chapel and a seventh century monastery  which were both reputedly destroyed by fire during a Viking raid around 978. The present chapel dates from the sixteenth century, excavations inside have revealed the foundations of earlier buildings. Beuno’s remains are said to have been interred within the building.

The remainder of the church was renovated in the nineteenth century, although most of the original structure which dates from between the fifteenth and seventeenth centuries remains intact. The monastery was restored by the Carmelites, white friars, before 1200 and they  occupied it until the dissolution.

The well lies by the old roadside around 200 yards to the west of the church. The village, and well, now bypassed, lay on the principal pilgrims route to Bardsey and would have been an important stop on their journey, particularly with its associations with St Winefride.

It has been reported that the well has suffered from vandalism in recent years, however it appeared clean and well kept, though somewhat overgrown, on the day of our visit. The spring is enclosed in a square stone pool, with stepped seats around it on two sides, and the whole enclosed by a wall rising to some eight feet. It is approached by a short pathway and steps from the roadside, from where it is clearly visible.

The well was traditionally resorted to for the treatment of sick children, in particular those suffering from epilepsy and rickets. It was also claimed to cure impotence. After bathing the patient was carried to St Beuno’s chapel and laid on rushes overnight on Beuno’s tomb, a plain altar like structure that stood in the centre of the chapel before Beuno’s shrine.. If they slept then the cure would be effective.

The custom was still in place at least until the 18th century, since Pennant remarks:

“… and I myself once saw on it (the tomb) a feather bed on which a poor paralytic from Merioneddshire had lain the whole night after undergoing the same ceremony.” [1]

The tomb was finally demolished, since it had become unsafe, in 1856. One piece, indicating how grand it might once have been, is preserved in the church.

There was another belief that water containing scrapings of stone from the pillars of the chapel was good for sore eyes; and there are records of bullocks being slaughtered and offered to Beuno in the church to ensure the wellbeing of local cattle. This custom was later replaced by monetary offerings and the sale of cattle and sheep bearing particular ear markings for the same purpose.

Offerings, stored in “Beuno’s cyff” were used to aid the poor of the community.

We left off the story of Beuno at the end of our discussion of his well at Gwyddelwern, and touched also on his story when describing St Winefride’s Well at Holywell, We conclude his story here.

Beuno followed King Cadwallon from Holywell to Caernarfon, but very quickly fell into dispute with him, and was offered land at Clynnog and on Anglesey by Gwyddaint, a cousin of Cadwallon. Here he established his churches and cells, and lived out the remainder of his life.

It was at Clynnog that once again legend recounts how he came to the rescue of a damsel in something more than a little distress. In this case it was the princess Tegiwyg, daughter of King Ynyr.

Tegiwyg had fallen in love with a young carpenter from Aberffraw who had been working on her father’s palace. To avoid further scandal her father agreed to their marriage. However, as they were travelling back to his home on Anglesey he got to thinking about the gulf between their stations in life, and maybe some of the stories he had spun to win her. “How could he go home with so elegant a wife without a place to take her to, and through the instigation of the devil, he cut off her head with his sword and pushed on his way home.” [2]

Beuno’s shepherds found the body and Beuno was soon on hand to perform another miracle. The restored Tegiwyg was given the option to return to her father but instead chose to remain with Beuno and to serve God. Just as in the case of Winefride years before, at the spot where her blood had fallen a spring of cold water burst forth. This was Ffynnon Digiwg, more commonly now known as Ffynnon Digwy, and lies a little to the south of Clynnog.

In all, Beuno is claimed to have restored six people to life, and legend has it that one day, at a time of need, he will be on hand to revive a seventh.

Hast though heard what Beuno sang?
Sing thy pater, noster and Credo
From death flight will not avail

Beuno’s feast day is celebrated on April 21st.

[1] Thomas Pennant(1788) Tours in Wales
[2] Sabine Baring Gould and John Fisher (1908) Lives of the British Saints
full details of each on the references page

Llanfihangel Glyn Myfyr lies between Corwen and Cerrigydrudion, a little off the A5. The village consists of a pub, the church and a few scattered houses. The church of St Michael which gives the village its name is a plain building, parts dating from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, but with little of note. A plaque high on the east wall marks the height reached by the water from the River Alwen that runs alongside, during a notorious flood of 1781

Ffynnon y Saint – the well of the Saints – is marked on early twentieth century maps around 300 yards to the north west of the church on the land of Tyddtyn Tudur, once home to the noted eighteenth century Welsh cultural historian and publisher Owen Jones (Owain Myfyr). Who is commemorated in the church The well was visited in 1912 by the Royal Commission for Ancient Monuments, who reported that

“The spring is now dry and the well chamber is practically empty. A depression to the east affords proof that the overflow was copious.”

The current historical record, Coflein, reports a chamber, 0.2 metres deep, dry and partly filled. and a visit by the Clywd Powys Archaeological Trust in 2003 reported  that

Ffynnon y Saint was still visible as a spring within living memory, lying beside the farm access road. It has now been completely filled in and no visible sign remains, even the well chamber of an earlier report being of uncertain form. The farmer could vaguely remember it from his youth.  (from Archwelio database)

The maps record the well as lying on the left hand side of the track approaching the farm beside the track and the field boundary. On our visit a small stream was flowing beside the track, although the gap between the track and the fence seemed much less than that implied by the maps, suggesting that possibly either the track or the field boundary has been adjusted in the 100 years since the maps were drawn up.

The other side of the track was marshy with tracks of streams flowing through it; a stone covered, concrete lined tank was there filled with water. The farmer said that all signs of the well had vanished, but then one kind of thought that he would, wouldn’t he?

I have found no accounts associated with the well or any customs associated with it. No evidence that it is linked with the church and with St Michael, or with some other now lost ecclesiastical foundation, there is a field across the river  known as Cae’r Saint, again with no recorded history or reason attached. Clearly there is a distant memory a religious significance now long lost, preserved only in these names within the landscape Llanfihangel Glyn Myfyr.

As we returned to the car, through the drizzle and gathering gloom, I tried explaining that it is just as interesting and important to document finding nothing as it is to record finding an impressive well chamber. I have a feeling few were convinced by the argument.

Din Sylwy is a large limestone outcrop in eastern of Anglesey, lying between the village of Llanddona and the coast. Standing out in the surrounding countryside it is one of the largest hill forts on the island, having been the defensive home of the local Iron Age population and later of the Roman incomers who occupied the site in the third and fourth centuries. Later it was quarried to provide stone to build the Menai Bridge.

 On its western slopes lies the small church of Llanfihangel din Sylwy, St Michael’s. Like a number of small Anglesey churches it is now alone in fields, having been deserted by the community that once surrounded it. The surviving church building is a small simple construction dating from the early fifteenth century, and retaining some of its medieval features although it was largely rebuilt in 1855, an event marked by the date carved roughly into the stone to the left of the doorway. It now hosts just occasional services on summer Sunday mornings and we were unable to see inside during our visit.

Its main attraction to us was the remains of a well, which lies outside the church gate, some 20 yards up the slope of Din Sylwy. The well too is largely forgotten, although a relatively well worn track led the way, suggesting that some people at least still visit, although some of the local residents we mentioned it to were unaware of its existence.

We are not aware of any dedication for the well and although it has been marked consistently on OS maps no name is given to it. The Welsh Ancient Monuments record, Coflein, notes helpfully that

“There is no reason to suppose that this was a holy well and no definite evidence that it was not”

Tristam Gray Hulse has reasonably suggested that perhaps it may well be a lost St Michael’s Well following the dedication of the church, and one of a number of such wells across North Wales. This is based purely by association with the church and not with any evidence to support it.

The well is cut into the hillside. A narrow outlet lined with stone and roofed with two large flat stone slabs. Two small steps descend into the water which was some three feet deep at the bottom of the recess.

This is in itself interesting since the Coflein record also states that

“The spring is said to have been boxed in with stones, although no trace could subsequently be found of this”

That, and the state of preservation of the well suggest that at some time in recent history the well may have been reconstructed to some degree.

Judging by tracks left in branches and leaves on the hillside it is probable that at times the well overflows its tank, the weather had been particularly wet at the time of our visit.

From this well we climbed Din Sylwy and crossed the flat top of the fortress. A vast circular expanse, ringed around by a lip of stone walling has earned the monument the name Bwrdd Arthur – Arthur’s Table. Although the sea is close by it was virtually invisible through the low mist and drizzle which has set in by then.

On the opposite side of the hill we approached Llanddona beach, famed in local legend as the arrival point of the notorious Llanddona witches, who were reputed to have come ashore here at some unremembered point in history.

Baring Gould [1] surmises that these were probably Irish criminals who had been set adrift from the coast of Ireland in a curricle with no rudder or paddles, this was a traditional punishment; although other legends identify them as being of Spanish descent.

On reaching the shore they begged the local inhabitants for food and water, but the locals feared these strange foreign seafarers and refused trying to force them back into the sea. However, the leader struck the earth with his staff, bringing forth a stream of clear cold water. In fear of this display the locals backed off, and the newcomers were enabled to stay.

They promptly set up home in the area and lived for several generations amongst but separate from the local population. The men lived by smuggling; the legend tells that it was impossible to overcome them, since each carried about with him a black fly tied in a knot of his neckerchief. When their strength failed in a fight they would undo the knots of their cravats, and the flies would fly at the eyes of their opponents and blind them.

Meanwhile, the women survived by witchcraft. They were dreaded, since they would curse anyone who refused them food and if they attended a market no one dared to bid against them.

Baring Gould quotes one such curse

May he wander for ages
And find at each step a stile
And at every stile a fall
And at every fall a broken bone
Not the largest nor the least bone
But the chief neck bone each time

It is probable that, like most of those associated with witchcraft they most likely had a good knowledge of medicinal herbs cures and fortune telling , and were resorted to in times if illness and worry.

They are remembered still in local legends and folk tales of the island. They are also remembered at Ffynnon Oer – the Cold Spring, said to be the spring that they caused to flow on their arrival, and the well around which they made their home.

Ffynnon Oer still flows, and still provides the main water source, now pumped and filtered, for the current occupiers of the house on whose land it flows. Here Bella Fawr, the greatest of the witches, is remembered for the good that she did, rather than for any evil. She is imagined to be a midwife for the local population and a healer, and there are stories that the well was also used for baptisms of those born in the area.

From Ffynnon Oer we headed south to Llaniestyn close to Llanddona, to search for the church and holy well of St Iestyn. Here is another church largely deserted by its community; and although we think we found the well in a small wood close by, it was so wet and dark by then that it wasn’t possible to take pictures. This site will have to await a return visit and a new posting.

[1] S Baring Gould (1903) A Book of North Wales. Methuen.

We would like to thank the owners of Ff Oer for their time and assistance and allowing us to visit their well

In the article on St Trillo, in their Lives of the British Saints, Baring Gould and Fisher mention that at one time there must have been a well dedicated to the saint at Llansannan, but all that remains (at the start of the twentieth century) is a ruined house bearing the name Ffynnon Drillo. Maps from this period show the location of a building and a well beside it.

The Coflein database, the record of the Royal Commission on Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales suggests that the well is surrounded by rough masonry or brickwork, however the reference cited is the survey of 1912 and no more recent documents are recorded. It was described then as a spring rising from the lower side of a bank into a basin of rough masonry some three feet square.

There is no mention of the well on the website of  Cymdeithas Ffynhonnau Cymru, although they do preserve the memory of a well associated with cow pox in Llansannan, but is unable to provide a location for the site.

Lewis in his 1849 Topographical Dictionary of Wales is far from encouraging in his description of the area:

 The surrounding scenery is almost totally devoid of beauty, the country presenting little more than an uninviting prospect of dreary wastes and mountainous ground

and:
The church is an ancient edifice, occupying a somewhat romantic situation, but possessing no architectural details of importance

Thus, with this background, we did not expect to find anything significant at the location marked on the map.

The site is in a small field just off the B5382 that climbs up to Gwytherin from Llansannan. The field slopes down steeply towards a stream that runs along the field boundary. No trace of the house now remains, although with the aid of a large scale map from 1900 it is possible to determine more or less where it stood, and with a little optimism assume a flattish rectangular area at the foot of the slope would be a suitable place for the building. The 1900 map marks a well beside the house, and this is represented today by the roughly circular boggy area cut into the hillside beside the stream. The area is well trampled by cattle. This would appear to be the most likely location for the well and is shown in the photograph below.

After recent very heavy rains the whole area was very wet. The stream that runs beside the well site appears to originate from a spring in an adjacent field twenty to thirty yards higher up the field.

St Trillo made his home at Llandrillo yn Rhos, on the coast some ten miles to the north of this site. This is where his much better known well and chapel can be visited. There is nothing to associate him with Llansannan or the area around this well. I have not been able to track down any traditions associated with the well. It is tempting to assume that Ffynnon Drillo may have been a stopping off point for pilgrims travelling to the shrine of St Winefride at Gwytherin four miles further up into the mountains. However today it remains nothing more than an enigmatic memory, recorded by the Ordnance Survey but few others.

There have been other wells in the region dedicated to St Trillo at Rhos on Sea (Llandrillo yn Rhos) and Llandrillo, near Corwen.

St Cybi’s Well

The track to the well has clearly been a major route at one time, the remains of stone walls and houses can be seen beside a wide track. It turns left onto a bridge crossing the stream and a raised stone causeway leading to the well buildings can be seen under the grass.

The buildings that stand now are the remains of eighteenth century buildings, on the left an enclosed bathing pool and beside it the remains of a house occupied by the well keeper. These were erected by the land owner Mr Price around 1730 after having been convinced of the efficacy of taking the waters. The spring itself lies immediately behind the bathing pool (in photos below), forming another small pool from which water flows into the building.

The well’s outlet is from the front of the building, through which it forms a fast flowing stream that flows through a stone lined channel across the field down towards the river. As it goes it passes through another smaller building, linked to the wellhouse by another stone path, which has at one time been a latrine block.

The bathing pool itself is inside the left hand building of the pair (shown below). it is stone lined,  approximately four yards square, with a narrow stone path running all the way around it. Within the walls of the chamber there are small niches in which candles and offerings have been left.

The well was a point of pilgrimage. Its waters were said to cure warts, lameness, blindness, scrofula, scurvy and rheumatism. Crutches and wheelbarrows left by cure seekers were to be seen around the well. A box, Cyff Gybi, was kept in the church to receive the offerings from grateful pilgrims.

At one time it is told that an eel lived in the well. The patient stood bare legged in the well and a cure would take place if the eel coiled itself around the patient’s legs. At one time the eel was removed and people believed that the well lost much of its powers at that time.

Treatment was also said to have consisted of giving patients an equal quantity of well-water and sea water, morning and evening, for a period varying from seven to ten days. They then had to bathe in the water once or twice a day, retiring after each bath to a bedchamber in the adjoining cottage where they were given a quantity of healing water to drink. The success or otherwise of the treatment was judged by whether the patient became warm in bed or remained cold, with the former condition indicating that the treatment was progressing satisfactorily.

An eighteenth century record of cures includes the case of one man, blind for 30 years having his sight restored after bathing his eyes in the well over a period of three weeks; whilst another was cured of a “sharp pain in the nose” after using the water. Water was frequently taken away from the well in bottles and casks for use as a medicine. Jones (1954) repeats the story of a band of smugglers who

“…when returning with casks of spirits from Porthdinllaen were challenged by an excise officer. The smugglers said the casks contained water from ffynnon Gybi which they were taking to the well known land owner Mr Price of Rhiwlas.”

The well was also frequently used for divination, with local youths floating handkerchiefs on the water to see which way their love would go.

Cybi is another locally famed saint with origins far distant from North Wales. He came to the area rather late in life, apparently fleeing from a chain of disagreements and feuds he had had elsewhere. From what evidence exists he is believed to have been born in Cornwall, his father a Roman military leader or minor king, and through his mother Gwen, he was a first cousin to St David.

He was educated in Cornwall and reputedly visited Jerusalem and Rome on pilgrimages before staying in France where he received his religious training. Baring Gould notes that some accounts have him staying in France until he was over 70, but this was clearly impossible.

He returned to Cornwall at a time of strife in the area, and Baring Gould suggests that, maybe involuntarily, he may have become involved as a leader of a failed uprising and was forced to flee northwards. He arrived in South Wales, but was not well received by the local ruler there. Although he managed to obtain land for the establishment of two cells, he soon moved across the sea to Ireland.

Again he worked on his ministry and established churches, but once again was involved in land disputes, and accused of incursion on other’s territory. Recrimination and curses followed as once again he was forced to move on, finally arriving on the Lleyn Peninsula where he founded his church at Llangybi. It was here that he plunged his staff into the ground bringing forth the waters which now flow as Ffynnon Gybi.

Once again disputes arose between Cybi and the King of Gwynedd, Maelgwn. In settlement Maelgwn eventually conceded his stronghold on Anglesey where Cybi finally ended his days. This is the site that became known as Caer Gybi, in English, Holyhead. Cybi died on the 8th November around the year 554. His feast day is now generally celebrated on the 8th November, although other sources record it as being on the 5th.

[1] Megalithic portal entry – see comments

Coflein data record