Download or read book The Holy Well Tradition written by Stiofán Ó Cadhla and published by Four Courts Press. This book was released on 2002 with total page 70 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It is estimated that there are up to 3000 holy wells in Ireland. The pattern or feast day of the local patron saint has been viewed as one of the most typical aspects of Irish culture and has served to define that culture as either primitive in a negative sense or traditional in a positive sense. The pattern in honour of St Declan of Ardmore, County Waterford, has been one of the most widely patronized in Munster and provides an opportunity to look at patterns in general through one particularly illustrative example.