Clootie Well Cornwall

In cornwall at madron well the practice is to tie the cloth and as it rots the ailment is believed to disappear.

Clootie well cornwall. Later still caylith brews a gruit or special herbal mix for owen using the branches of the hawthorn as well as other plants growing around the well. Clootie wells are not just present in scotland however with examples being known in cornwall and ireland. Clootie wells like the one here at munlochy are found in celtic places like cornwall and ireland and are linked to ancient healing traditions. This holy well was dedicated to st fillan and cloth was tied to overhanging shrub branches.

This suggests a celtic iron age origin for the tradition although there are other examples of trees decorated with ribbons and scraps of cloth such as the evenki people s shaman trees far away in siberia or tibetan prayer flags perhaps suggesting an even earlier shared. Clootie wells are wells or springs almost always with a tree growing beside them with an assortment of garments or rags left often tied to the branches of the trees surrounding the well. Many holy wells are thought to have been the focus for pre christian rites and ceremonies and even today the trees and bushes surrounding the well are festooned with rags known as clouties tied on as protection against evil or to ensure good health and good fortune. The rag or cloot is dipped in the well and tied to a tree in the hope that a sickness or ailment will fade as the rag disintegrates.

Madron well is one of the most hallowed of cornish well sites and has been a place of pilgrimage for many centuries. A clootie well once existed at kilallan near kilmacolm in renfrewshire. In wynn s mind the way to cleanse himself is through the common means of a clootie well a well filled with water sacred to a spirit or a local goddess.