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Mother Anthony's Well

Sacred Well

<b>Mother Anthony's Well</b>Posted by tjjImage © tjj
Nearest Town:Devizes (3km SE)
OS Ref (GB):   ST9980364260 / Sheet: 173
Latitude:51° 22' 36.65" N
Longitude:   2° 0' 10.19" W

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<b>Mother Anthony's Well</b>Posted by tjj <b>Mother Anthony's Well</b>Posted by tjj <b>Mother Anthony's Well</b>Posted by tjj <b>Mother Anthony's Well</b>Posted by tjj

Fieldnotes

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Visited 1/11/2010

In the fields at the foot of Oliver's Castle, there is a small wild wood, with tangled undergrowth from which emerges a lively stream (carrying a surprising amount of water) at its western edge. This wood is marked on the OS map as Mother Anthony's Well. Access to the interior was difficult, but once inside the wood,there are springs in abundance.
We had given up on finding the well in the wood and were walking around its perimeter to retrace our steps back up to Oliver's Castle when we heard the clear sound of running water - and there it was, forming a small pool before falling into a fast flowing stream.

It is reputed to be the site of a Romano-British shrine, but archaeological finds there put its use back well into prehistoric times: flint tools from the Mesolithic and Neolithic; a Neolithic axehead and pottery fragments; Bronze age pottery and flint tools; and various objects from the Iron age, including a brooch, a ring and a whetstone.
ref: (Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre Sites and Monuments Record).

Note:
The hummocky hillock landscape on the 'other side' of Roundway Down has an ancient, odd feel to it - hard to describe, walking through it is recommended.
tjj Posted by tjj
5th November 2010ce

Links

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Bath and Camerton Archaeological Society


Geophysical survey of the area of the well, by Jan Dando (2012?). There seems to have been late Bronze Age or early Iron Age settlement nearby.
Rhiannon Posted by Rhiannon
20th January 2017ce

Wiltshire and Swindon Sites and Monument Record


Some of the bronze/iron age finds listed here. Search for Mother Anthony's Well and Bromham.
tjj Posted by tjj
5th November 2010ce
Edited 6th November 2010ce

Geograph


An ancient well at the foot of Roundway Down in sight of Oliver's Castle.
tjj Posted by tjj
5th November 2010ce
Edited 5th November 2010ce