<< Our Photo Pages >> St.Magnus's Well - Holy Well or Sacred Spring in Scotland in Orkney
Submitted by howar on Wednesday, 27 April 2005 Page Views: 7103
Springs and Holy WellsSite Name: St.Magnus's Well Alternative Name: Man's WellCountry: Scotland County: Orkney Type: Holy Well or Sacred Spring
Nearest Town: Stromness Nearest Village: Birsay
Map Ref: HY25652750
Latitude: 59.127798N Longitude: 3.300691W
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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Runemage visited - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 4 Access: 5 Just spotted this as I was driving along. As I was reading the sign, I heard the trickle of running water and found a pipe sticking out of the ground beside a wooden fence that had a clean mug left there for thirsty travellers.
RCAHMS NMRS No. HY22NE 9 is now shown by a corroded iron pump-head over a modern square drystone construction at HY25652750. St.Magnus' well was known for it's healing quantities. The record show's the present site as being remembered neither as being said well or for healing qualities. Given the high density of wells shown on the 1882 O.S. maps of Orkney (half-a-dozen or more in The Barony) it is possible that there is no identity, but modern absence of evidence is not evidence of absence, people did move about within these isles (a similar example comes from a 1966 Ordnance Survey enquiry about Crantit - the reference was two centuries old and the present farmers had only been there a few decades).
Coming to Birsay directly after the working mill is a side road for the Barony Hotel. The well is at the side of this road not far from the junction. The mediocre description is all too accurate. But the surrounding environ promises there was once a more ancient site hereabouts, either side of the road looks promising. Of course it could be the original well lay further down/up the slope (in Yesnaby there was a Crossiekield holy well near St. Bride's Chapel. No wells appear thereabouts in 1882 and I strongly suspect that it lay opposite the Brough of Bigging) or resembled more a spring. Over the road can be seen a rounded stone several feet long. Min came to mind. If this 'phallic' object is original perhaps this was alway's Man's Well locally and the St. Magnus apellation used by the toffs or to impress enquirers?
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Wir möchten mehr über diese Stätte erfahren. Bitte zögern Sie nicht, eine kurze Beschreibung und relevante Informationen in Deutsch hinzuzufügen.
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