St Anthony’s Well, Llansteffan

A quiet holy well, lying a couple of miles south of the Cistercian Way

Highlights

• Celtic holy well near the sea
  

St Anthony’s Well is hidden behind the wall of a private garden, accessible through an anonymous side gate. A slow trickle of water drips into the shallow, moss-lined chamber. It is set deep into a bank, the water just in reach at a stretch. At the back are two ancient stone niches, the lower a shelf for offerings, the upper an arched recess that almost certainly held a statue.

This hidden little spring is named after St Anthony of Egypt, the first hermit in Christian tradition, who lived in the desert in the 4th century. A plaque alongside the well says a local Celtic monk wanted to emulate St Anthony, and decided to live beside Carmarthen Bay as a hermit. He adopted the saint’s name, and dedicated this well to his memory.There is no indication of the historical source for this story, but it sounds more plausible than many Celtic legends. The well had a stone housing in the early 19th century, and was in use as a wishing well. It is rather hidden away now, but tidily kept.‍

By the garden of: St Anthony’s Cottage, Church Lane, Llansteffan SA33 5JX

W3W: jacket.unveils.prefect

GPS: 51.7638N 4.3986W

The well is a short distance from the beach at St Anthony’s Bay, but tricky to find. From Llansteffan village centre, walk south down Church Road, past the parish church, towards the ruined castle on the coast. After 750m, ignore the sharp left-hand turn up to the castle and keep walking straight ahead for another 550m. You come to two houses on the right, at which point the lane bends left downhill into the woods, with two long gates side by side here. Take the left one down towards the beach and look out for a wooden door in the stone wall on the right after about 100m. St Anthony’s Well is through here.