<< Our Photo Pages >> St Decumen's Well - Holy Well or Sacred Spring in England in Somerset
Submitted by holywell on Tuesday, 12 September 2006 Page Views: 11165
Springs and Holy WellsSite Name: St Decumen's WellCountry: England County: Somerset Type: Holy Well or Sacred Spring
Nearest Village: Watchet
Map Ref: ST064426
Latitude: 51.174950N Longitude: 3.34032W
Condition:
5 | Perfect |
4 | Almost Perfect |
3 | Reasonable but with some damage |
2 | Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site |
1 | Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks |
0 | No data. |
-1 | Completely destroyed |
5 | Superb |
4 | Good |
3 | Ordinary |
2 | Not Good |
1 | Awful |
0 | No data. |
5 | Can be driven to, probably with disabled access |
4 | Short walk on a footpath |
3 | Requiring a bit more of a walk |
2 | A long walk |
1 | In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find |
0 | No data. |
5 | co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates |
4 | co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map |
3 | co-ordinates scaled from a bad map |
2 | co-ordinates of the nearest village |
1 | co-ordinates of the nearest town |
0 | no data |
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bishop_pam visited on 23rd Feb 2024 - their rating: Cond: 5 Amb: 5 Access: 4
St Decumen was a missionary Celtic Christian who on his cloak and accompanied by his trusty cow, reached the coast of Somerset from Wales. However his missionary teachings were not welcome to the old heathen leaders, and so they plotted to remove him. Thus he was attacked whilst in prayer and summarily decapitated (other authorities say it was by pagan robbers).
However his decapitation did not stop his missionary zeal and he picked up his head and washed in the nearby stream. After which he replaced it back on his own body and carried on. Others say that the spring itself arose where the head fell. A common motif.
In 1914 the structure surrounding the well consisted of : "great stones set on end, having a third forming a roof on top of them. As the water runs down sharply sloping field it flows into a number of stone basins, one below another".
Today the structure appears to have repaired and the side walls consist of a number of slates, however the cover is still one large piece. The water still flows into three stone basins, although they are a little clogged with sediment. A series of steps (somewhat eroded) reach the well. A great deal of clear water remains in the well, and according to Horne, it was still sought after in 1914, although it would appear that bar a few coins, there is now no evidence of this.
Tofind this side take the road to Watchet off the A39 and then take the church road on the left. Park at the church and take the side lane to the well (it is signposted). A white gate leads down to the well. It is a delightful site.
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