Holy well

<p>A holy well or sacred spring is a <a href="/facts/Well/aPFvzk3V">well</a>, <a href="/facts/Spring_(hydrosphere)/blPBY4VG">spring</a> or small pool of water revered either in a <a href="/facts/Christianity/nKyJHlqq">Christian</a> or <a href="/facts/Paganism/JaWTHBtJ">pagan</a> context, sometimes both. The water of holy wells is often thought to have healing qualities, through the <a href="/facts/Numen/6Ez06Ubl">numinous</a> presence of its guardian spirit or Christian <a href="/facts/Saint/lDE6So1B">saint</a>. They often have local <a href="/facts/Legend/z1qgeFQQ">legends</a> associated with them; for example in <a href="/facts/Christian_mythology/BJ14Gguo">Christian legends</a>, the water is often said to have been made to flow by the action of a saint. Holy wells are often also places of <a href="/facts/Ritual/EIJngpmf">ritual</a> and <a href="/facts/Pilgrimage/e0Gvd7TV">pilgrimage</a>, where people <a href="/facts/Prayer/Gzu2VMAo">pray</a> and leave <a href="/facts/Votive_offering/beHVf4L3">votive offerings</a>. In <a href="/facts/Celtic_nations/YW5DEv7T">Celtic regions</a>, strips of cloth are often tied to trees at holy wells, known as <a href="/facts/Clootie_well/5j4zL7an">clootie wells</a>.
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Holy well open-in-new

Holy well