Details

The monument includes a medieval holy well situated around a spring-head on
the upper north-western slope of Roughtor on north-west Bodmin Moor.
The holy well is visible as a low rectangular building measuring 2.75m NW-SE
by 2m NE-SW externally. Its walls, up to 0.75m wide, are of unmortared,
coarse, dressed, granite blocks. Externally, the walls rise to only 0.2m above
ground level and support two unworked granite roof slabs. One slab, 1.4m long
by 1m wide, remains apparently in situ covering the south-east end of the
building; the other, adjacent, slab, 1.2m long by 0.75m wide, has been
dislodged and obliquely spans the north-west end of the building. The upper
courses of rubble walling under this north-western roof slab have been partly
dismantled. Internally, the walls define a well-chamber measuring 1.75m NW-SE
by 0.8m NE-SW, enclosing the spring head and open to the north-west where the
water issues forth into a gully through the thick peat on the hillside. At the
open north-west end, the floor of the chamber is 0.6m below the level of the
roof slab's underside. This floor level descends to 1.1m below the roof at the
rear, south-east of the chamber by a flight of three steps, each up to 0.3m
wide and 0.2m high. At the open end of the chamber, a squared block in the
end-face of the north-east wall bears a corroded `L-shaped' iron hinge pin,
the lower of two on which the missing wooden well door was hung. The block
bearing the similar upper hinge pin has been displaced and now lies loose on
the ground 1m to the north-east. Immediately beyond the chamber's open end,
the initial channel through which the spring water flowed was defined by
granite slabs: a single slab 1.5m long along the channel's south-west edge and
two surviving edge-set slabs over a similar distance along its north-east
edge. The well entrance, the channel and the natural gully beyond are now
partly filled and blocked by numerous small slabs, some of which have dressed
faces, including that with the hinge pin, and clearly derive from the partial
dismantling of the holy well's upper courses by more recent stone-workers on
this hillside.
The distinctive hill of Roughtor forms a focus for a small group of medieval
religious monuments. The medieval remains of St Michael's Chapel are situated
on the summit of Roughtor, 330m SSW of this holy well, while a small cairn
with a roughly-formed cross slab on its east side marks a medieval grave
located 170m to the south-west, also on the upper north-western slope of
Roughtor. The summit of Roughtor and its surrounding moors also contain
numerous, extensive and prominent Neolithic and Bronze Age settlement, ritual
and funerary monuments, clearly visible from this later holy well.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Bodmin Moor, the largest of the Cornish granite uplands, has long been
recognised to have exceptional preservation of archaeological remains. The
Moor has been the subject of detailed archaeological survey and is one of the
best recorded upland landscapes in England. The extensive relict landscapes of
prehistoric, medieval and post-medieval date provide direct evidence for human
exploitation of the Moor from the earliest prehistoric period onwards. The
well-preserved and often visible relationship between settlement sites, field
systems, ceremonial and funerary monuments as well as later industrial remains
provides significant insights into successive changes in the pattern of land
use through time.
Holy wells are water sources with specifically Christian associations. The
custom of venerating springs and wells as sacred sites is also known to have
characterised pre-Christian religions in Britain. Although Christian wells
have been identified from the 6th century AD, it is clear that some holy wells
originated as earlier sacred sites. The cult of holy wells continued
throughout the medieval period. Its condemnation at the Reformation (c.1540)
ended new foundations but local reverence and folklore customs at existing
holy wells often continued, in some cases to the present day. The holy wells
sometimes functioned as sites for baptism but they were also revered for less
tangible reasons which may have origins in pre-Christian customs, such as
folklore beliefs in the healing powers of the water and its capacity generally
to effect a desired outcome to future events. Associated rituals often
evolved, usually requiring the donation of an object or coin, to retain the
'sympathy' of the well for the person seeking its benefits. At their simplest,
holy wells may be unelaborated natural springs with associated religious
traditions. Structural additions may include lined well-shafts or conduit
heads on springs, often with a tank to gather the water at the surface. The
roofing of walled enclosures to protect the water source and define the sacred
area created well-houses which may be simple, unadorned small structures
closely encompassing the water source, or larger buildings, decorated in the
prevailing architectural style and facilitating access with features such as
steps to the water source and open areas with stone benching where visitors
might shelter. At their greatest elaboration, chapels, and sometimes churches,
may have been built over the well or adjacent to the well-house. The number of
holy wells is not known but estimates suggest at least 600 nationally. Of
these, over 200 are recorded from Cornwall, providing one of the highest
densities of surviving examples. The seven holy wells known on Bodmin Moor
form a topographically distinct sub-group containing several of the major
types of holy well. They provide important information on the nature of
religious beliefs and practices and on the relationship between religion and
the landscape during the medieval period.

This holy well on the north-western slope of Roughtor has survived well.
Despite some minor disturbance restricted to the upper courses of the chamber
and the roof, this simple well-house is virtually intact and has not been
excavated or subject to any other recorded or visible ground disturbance.
Coupled with the presence of the spring still contained by the well chamber
and still flowing out its original course down the peaty hillside, this will
produce rare waterlogged deposits in and around the well contemporary with its
construction and use. Its proximity to other medieval ecclesiastical monuments
about Roughtor summit shows clearly one of the important relationships between
religious activity and the topography in this period. The monument's proximity
to extensive Bronze Age settlement, ritual and funerary sites illustrates
changing land use in this upland area between the prehistoric and medieval
periods.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
Bond, C.J., Monument Class Description: Holy Wells, (1990)
consulted 1992, Carter, A./CAU/RCHME, 1:2500 AP plots for SX 1380-1 & SX 1480-1,
consulted 1992, CAU, 1:1000 Bodmin Moor Survey plan; SX 1481 SE,
consulted 1992, Cornwall SMR entry for PRN 3308,
consulted 1992, Cornwall SMR entry for PRN 3383,
pp.305-7. Holy Well, CAU/English Heritage, Bodmin Moor, Cornwall. An evaluation for the MPP, (1990)

Source: Historic England