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Unless otherwise stated, this image is the copyright of the submitter. Contact them for permission to reproduce it. |  | | Description | St Cybi was a 6th century Cornishman who is said to have created this spring by striking a rock with his staff.
Climb the stone stile in the corner of the graveyard of the Parish Church in Langybi and then follow the fence line that runs at right angles to the graveyard wall. Once through the gorse at the far side of the field, a bridge will take you over a stream to the substantial ruins of St Cybi’s Wellhouse and the custodian’s house next to it. The well basin is in the centre of the wellhouse with stone paving right around it.
The waters were reputed to cure warts, lameness, blindness, scrofula, scurvy and rheumatism. Treatment consisted of giving patients equal parts of well water and sea water, morning and evening for between seven and ten days. They then had to bathe in the water once or twice a day after which they retired to a bedchamber in the custodians cottage where they were given some of the healing water to drink. The success or otherwise of the treatment was judged by whether the patient became warm or cold. Warmth indicated that treatment was progressing satisfactorily.
The well was also used by girls to ascertain their lover’s intentions. They would spread their pocket handkerchief on the surface of the water in the well, if the water pushed the handkerchief in a southerly direction, they knew that their lover was honest and had honourable intentions, but if the handkerchief moved in a northerly direction then he did not.
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| Posted Comments: Soren
(2005-11-07) | The Parish Church in the village is a wonderful place to visit, with some of the headstones in the cemetary hundreds of years old.
After going through the stone stile in the top-right corner of the cemetary, you should be made aware that there are animals kept in the fields you must pass through, and sheep are often found in and around the wellhouse. Unfortunately, disabled access is pretty-much impossible, but that is to be expected given that the well is in the middle of nowhere.
The well is magnificent place to visit, and gives it's visitors a wonderful feeling of calm and serenity which last several days afterward. I hope to re-visit soon.
Soren |
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