St Mary’s Well / Ffynnon Fair, Nant-y-Patrick

This most mysterious of all Celtic well chapels once drew pilgrims in great number to bathe in its seven-sided stone pool, now a seldom-visited ruin away from the road

Highlights

• Atmospheric ruined chapel and holy well

Battered, overgrown, neglected, and lost, Ffynnon Fair has the most atmospheric setting of any Welsh holy well. Quite how its star-shaped healing pool still brims with holy water after 500 years is a miracle in its own right. The melancholic medieval ruin around it lies buried in dense undergrowth, half a mile from the nearest road. It is on private property and permission must be sought in advance before visiting. Access to this well has been jeopardised recently by visitors leaving gates open, a sin no devout pilgrim should ever carry on their journey.

It invites instant comparison with Holywell, just 11 miles away. That famous healing spring attracts thousands of pilgrims each year, as it has done for more than a millennium. At Ffynnon Fair, my feet sank into a layer of silt so soft it was hard to tell where water ended and mud began. The well chamber probably dates from the 15th century and still holds a metre of clear water. Shattered stonework lies hidden in the depths, requiring considerable balance with bare feet.

Atmospheric it may be, but why is it holy? Ffynnon Fair means ‘St Mary’s Well’ in English, ‘Fair’ being the Welsh form of ‘Mary’. There are several wells named after the Blessed Virgin in Wales, but the pre-Reformation history of this particular well is completely missing.

Issue two of the Living Spring Journal says the first meaningful reference to worship at the well comes in a calendar of 1607. Locals would visit the holy waters at the feast of the Assumption (August 15). The same article records the local oral tradition that the well was built on the site of a vision of the Blessed Virgin, although that could be inferred at any well dedicated to her.

A stone channel carries the holy water along the threshold of the church door, which still exists in the ruined wall. You therefore cross the stream as you enter the church, over a narrow stone slab installed as a makeshift bridge. This unique arrangement is said by the authors of The Water of Life to reflect Ezekiel’s vision of a temple: “I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east” (Ezekiel 47:1). It might have some other symbolic meaning, such as crossing the Red Sea into the promised land, or might simply act as a baptismal reminder. The church is not properly aligned east-west for some unknown reason.

The well might once have been inside a small baptistery building that was later incorporated into the larger church. Some of the building possibly dates back as far as the 12th century, although exact details are hard to come by. As at Holywell, the star-shaped well chamber has five points on it and a flat edge where the outflow is.

The remote location made it easy to use the well for quick immersion, as it was originally intended. I checked that no one was walking along the path behind before entering the chapel enclosure to bathe with the simple enthusiasm of a medieval pilgrim.

Somewhat bizarrely, the well appears on the front cover of The Living Stream, even though the author pointedly focuses on English wells. So irresistible are its charms.

Directions‍

Park on unmarked lane off the B5381, postcode near turn off LL17 0EP

Contact via: www.facebook.com/glanllynfarmher

W3W: curvy.hairstyle.findsGPS: 53.2279N 3.4559W

Most guides say this is in Cefn, presumably meaning the parish of Cefn Meiriadog nearby. It is better identified as lying one mile due east of Nant-y-Patrick, or two miles south of St Asaph. Permission needs to be sought from the farm before visiting (contact details above). From Nant-y-Patrick, head west on the B5381. Cross the River Elwy and take the first left after 100 yards by a small red postbox, where the main road bends right.

Exactly 0.3 miles after the junction, bear left down a narrow lane and park, just before the sign advising no parking beyond this point. Walk down to the collection of cottages at the end and continue straight ahead, beside the river, until you see a small brick shed. A tiny stream crosses your path, which actually flows down from the holy well. Cross this stream on the stepping stones and turn right, following the flow uphill to the ruined church. A gate leads through rusty metal railings.