:St Gwenfaen's Well

St Gwenfaen's Well lies in an isolated position in a cleft in the rock in a dell overlooking the cliffs of Porth Gwalch (Welsh: Hawk Bay) in the community of Rhoscolyn in the south west of Holy Island, Anglesey.{{r|Cadw Listing Gwenfaen Well|Coflein Gwenfaen Well|GAT Gwenfaen Well}} The well is just under {{convert|1|km|mile|sigfig=1|abbr=in}} west by south west of the village of Rhoscolyn which is the location of St Gwenfaen's Church, part of the ministry area of Holy Island (Church in Wales).{{r|Cadw Listing Gwenfaen Well}}{{r|St Gwenfaen Church|Church in Wales}}

As with much of Holy Island, the well lies within the area of the Glannau Ynys Gybi (Welsh: Holy Island Coast) Site of Special Scientific Interest and the Anglesey Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.{{r|LUC AONB Report}}{{r|Anglesey Nature}}

The remains of the drystone well house are {{convert|4.5|m|ft|abbr=in}} east-west by (originally) {{convert|5.5|m|ft|abbr=in}} north-south. Three steps descend into the building from the east into a {{convert|2.0|m|ft|abbr=in}} square chamber with a flagstone floor and four diagonal stone seats in each corner. A narrow opening and steps lead into the rectangular well chamber, {{convert|1.2|m|ft|abbr=in}} east-west by {{convert|0.6|m|ft|abbr=in}} north-south, with recessed semi-circular seats at each side.{{r|Cadw Listing Gwenfaen Well|Coflein Gwenfaen Well|GAT Gwenfaen Well|RCHAHMW Gwenfaen Well}}

An outer external well chamber roughly {{convert|1.5|m|ft|abbr=in}} square contains the well itself, and is separated from the internal well chamber by a drystone wall, which includes a stone slab with circular grooves cut in its upper and lower edges to allow water to flow between the two chambers. The external chamber can be reached by six descending stone steps on either side cut into the cleft in the rock.{{r|Cadw Listing Gwenfaen Well|Coflein Gwenfaen Well|GAT Gwenfaen Well|RCHAHMW Gwenfaen Well}}

At the western end a stone slab with a hole allows water to be retained in the chamber or be released into a {{convert|4.6|m|ft|abbr=in}} long paved channel leading to a pool {{convert|35|m|ft|abbr=in}} west of the well.{{r|Cadw Listing Gwenfaen Well|Coflein Gwenfaen Well}}

St Gwenfaen's Well has not been accurately dated but is assumed to be medieval. The nearby church dedicated to St Gwenfaen is on the site of an older church dating from 630 AD.{{r|St Gwenfaen Church|Coflein Gwenfaen Well}}

Gwenfaen was the daughter of Paul Hen of Manaw (who also known as Old Paulinus), and sister of Peulan and Gwyngeneu, both saints who also lived on Holy Island. She was known for healing mental illness. While being chased by druids, Gwenfaen is said to have climbed a nearby rock stack and was carried away by angels when the tide came in.{{r|St Gwenfaen Church|Snowdonia Folk Tales}}

An offering of two white quartz pebbles into the water of the well is said to cure mental problems.{{r|St Gwenfaen Church}}

St Gwenfaen's Well was designated as a Grade II listed building in 1971 and as a scheduled monument in 1987.{{r|Cadw Listing Gwenfaen Well|Cadw Scheduling Gwenfaen Well}}

The well is blessed every year on, or near, Gwenfaen's Saint's day, 4 November, after Holy Communion in the nearby church.{{r|St Gwenfaen Church|Snowdonia Rhoscolyn}}

St Gwenfaen's Well can be reached by footpath, either by a circular route around Rhoscolyn or by following the Anglesey Coastal Path (part of the Wales Coast Path).{{r|Rhoscolyn Walk|Dillon}}

{{Portal|Wales}}

• List of Scheduled Monuments in Anglesey
• St Allgo's Well
• St Seiriol's Well

{{Reflist|30em|refs=

{{cite report

| work = National Monuments Record of Wales (NMRW)

| title = Ffynnon Gwenfaen

| date = 16 July 1987

| publisher = Cadw

| orig-year = Scheduled 1987

| id = Cadw Id: AN055}}

{{cite web

| work = Statutory List of Buildings

| title = Ffynnon Gwenfai

| url = http://cadwpublic-api.azurewebsites.net/reports/listedbuilding/FullReport?lang=en&id=5328

| date = 3 June 1998

| publisher = Cadw

| access-date = 24 June 2017

| orig-year = Listed 5 April 1971

| via = Historic Wales

| id = Cadw Building ID 5328}}

{{Coflein

| num = 32172

| desc = St Gwenfaen's Well

| access-date = 30 September 2021}}

{{watprn

| 1 = GAT

| 2 = 2004

| title = Ffynnon Gwenfaen Holy Well, Rhoscolyn

| access-date = 30 September 2021}}

{{cite book

| author = Royal Commission on Ancient and Historical Monuments in Wales and Monmouthshire

| work = An Inventory of the Ancient Monuments in Anglesey

| title = 76 Rhoscolyn

| date = 1960

| orig-year = 1937

| publisher = HMSO

| url = https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=d0nwILR1UQEC&printsec=frontcover&output=reader&hl=en&pg=GBS.PA145

| page = 146

| location = London

| oclc = 631587260

| via = google play}}

{{cite web

| title = Welcome to St Gwenfaen's Church

| website = stgwenfaen.org

| url = http://stgwenfaen.org/

| access-date = 14 May 2016}}

{{cite web

| title = St Gwenfaen, Rhoscolyn

| url = http://www.churchinwales.org.uk/structure/places/churches/?id=2481

| website = Church in Wales

| access-date = 15 May 2016}}

{{cite web

| title = Rhoscolyn

| url = http://www.snowdoniaguide.com/rhoscolyn.html

| website = Snowdonia Guide

| access-date = 15 May 2016}}

{{cite web

| last1 = Ratcliffe

| first1 = John

| title = Glannau Ynys Gybi – Holyhead Coast SSSI

| url = http://angleseynature.co.uk/webmaps/glannauynysgybi.html

| website = Anglesey Nature: Natur Môn

| access-date = 14 May 2016}}

{{cite report

| last1 = Grant

| first1 = Maria

| last2 = Parker

| first2 = Sally

| title = State of the AONB Report for Anglesey

| publisher = Land Use Consultants

| url = http://www.ynysmon.gov.uk/Journals/2015/04/13/e/k/b/State-of-the-AONB-Report-for-Anglesey.pdf

| page = 11

| website = Isle of Anglesey County Council

| access-date = 14 May 2016

| date = April 2014}}

{{cite book

| last1 = Maddern

| first1 = Eric

| others = Illustrated by Sue Mynall

| title = Snowdonia Folk Tales

| date = October 2015

| publisher = The History Press

| location = Stroud, Gloucester

| isbn = 9780750966429

| oclc = 948249400

| pages = 35–6

| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=R4ieCgAAQBAJ&dq=Gwenfaen&pg=PT79

| access-date = 15 May 2016}}

{{cite web

| title = Circular Walk – Rhoscolyn (SH271751)

| url = https://www.visitanglesey.co.uk/media/73800/circular_walks_rhoscolyn.pdf

| website = visitanglesey.co.uk

| publisher = Isle of Anglesey County Council

| access-date = 15 May 2016}}

{{cite book

| last1 = Dillon

| first1 = Paddy

| title = The Wales Coast Path: Llwybr Arfordir Cymru

| chapter = Stage 11 South Stack to Fourmilebridge

| date = 2015

| publisher = Cicerone Press

| location = Milnthorpe, Cumbria

| isbn = 978-1-85284-742-5

| oclc = 897884010

| chapter-url = https://books.google.com/books?id=GP39BQAAQBAJ&dq=Gwenfaen&pg=PT135

| access-date = 15 May 2016}}

}}

• {{cite book

| last1 = Jones

| first1 = Francis

| title = The Holy Wells of Wales

| date = 2003

| orig-year = 1954

| publisher = University of Wales Press

| isbn = 978-0708311455

| oclc = 39985359

| edition = 2nd

}}

• {{cite book

| last = Breverton

| first = Terry

| author-link = Terry Breverton

| title = Wales' 1000 Best Heritage Sites

| date = 2010

| publisher = Amberley Publishing

| location = Stroud, Gloucester

| isbn = 978-1-8486-8991-6

| oclc = 713568411

| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=8TaIAwAAQBAJ&dq=Wales%27+1000+Best+Heritage+Sites&pg=PP1

}}

• {{cite map

| url = http://www.visitanglesey.co.uk/media/395176/map9rhoscolyn1.pdf

| scale = 1:25,000

| title = Map 9 – Rhoscolyn

| website = visitanglesey.co.uk

| publisher = Isle of Anglesey County Council

}} – map of part of Anglesey Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty

• {{cite web

|title = St Gwenfaens Well; Ffynnon Wenfaen

|url = http://coflein.gov.uk/en/site/32172/images/

| website = coflein

| publisher = RCAHMW

}} – online images

• {{cite web

| title = St Gwenfaens Well

| url = http://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=24811

| website = The Megalithic Portal

}} – gallery of photos including close-ups of features

• {{cite web

| title = North Wales

| url = http://orthodoxcumbria.org.uk/british/north-wales.html

| website = The Orthodox Church in Cumbria

| publisher = The Orthodox Parish of Sts Bega, Mungo, and Herbert, Keswick, Cumbria

}} – shrines, churches and wells associated with Welsh saints

• {{cite web

| title = Map B Ynys Môn – Isle of Anglesey

| url = http://www.walescoastpath.gov.uk/media/1418/wales-coast-path-region-b-isle-of-anglesey.pdf

| website = Wales Coast Path

| publisher = National Resources Wales

}} – includes Maps 13 to 28 covering the coast of Anglesey

{{Anglesey}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Gwenfaen's Well}}

Category:Scheduled monuments in Anglesey

Category:Rhoscolyn

Gwenfaen

Category:Grade II listed buildings in Anglesey