More information : [ST 5075 3856] Chalice or Blood Well [GT]
(Chalybeate Spa)
Chalice Well, a large chalybeate spring breaks out of the rock
at the foot of Glastonbury Tor. There is apparently no evidence
to show that this well was regarded as a holy well in the days
when the Abbey was standing. It did, however, gain popularity
about 1750 for its alleged curative properties.
Baths (? date) said to have been below 'Chalice Well' before it
was turned into a spa.
Chalice Well, or Blood Spring, is a major spring with a flow of
25,000 gallons of water a day. It comprises a square
well - shaft with an irregular pentagonal inner chamber opening
from its west side.
The earliest historical reference to the spring was in 1210
when it was called 'Chalewelle'
In 1961 the well and its vicinity were executed by P.A. Rahtz
for the Chalice Well Trust. It was concluded that the
'well-shaft' - which may possibly have been a free standing
well-house - was probably constructed in the 13th cent. to
supply water to rebuilt Glastonbury Abbey. The inner chamber
probably dates from c.1750, when Glastonbury became famous as a
spa and a Pump Room and Bath House were built.
Finds from the excavation included twenty flints, probably
Mesolithic; and single sherds of I.A. and Roman pottery. These
are proof of frequentation rather than occupation.
The well (see attached photograph) is correctly positioned on
O.S. 25 in.
1.
1133 CHILKWELL STREET (North East Side)
The Chalice Well
ST 5038 8/5 21.6.50
I GV
2.
Spring of chalybeate water rising on southern slope of Chalice
Hill. A pre-Christian well traditionally associated with the
legend of the Holy Grail and Joseph of Arimathea hermitage. The
well itself is built of stone blocks and forms 2 underground
chambers, the inner one reached through an archway at the foot
of the west wall of the well-shaft. Total depth is about 9 ft.
Wooden well-cover with wrought-iron decoration made in 1919.
Lower down the hill is a mid-C18 stone-flagged courtyard with a
stone bath fed by waterfall.
Nos 87 and 89. The Chalice Well and Tor Schoolhouse form an
important group.
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