A01=James Rattue
Author_James Rattue
Category=JBCC
Category=NHT
Category=NK
Category=QRAX
Category=QRM
Category=QRS
Category=QRVJ1
Cult of Water
England
eq_bestseller
eq_history
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
eq_society-politics
Holy Wells
Religious History
Product details
- ISBN 9780851158488
- Weight: 297g
- Dimensions: 156 x 234mm
- Publication Date: 25 Oct 2001
- Publisher: Boydell & Brewer Ltd
- Publication City/Country: GB
- Product Form: Paperback
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A history of holy wells from the pagan cult of water to the Christian wells of the middle ages, and including a full gazetteer.
The holy well is the absolute combination of mystery and utility. There are hundreds of them still to be found, some easily, others with good maps. This useful book lists them all, and in so doing takes us into the realm of a still little-known spiritual area... It also leads us through many exceedingly interesting though remote areas of Celtic and English Christian history. RONALD BLYTHE [TABLET] Holy wells are an ancient and mysterious part of the landscape, yet have been the subject of little serious study. James Rattue has been fascinated by them for many years, and has now written the first general history of wells and their religious and cultural associations. He begins the story in the ancient world, exploring the archetypal motifs present in the cult of water, then traces the distinctive development of the holy well in England, examining pagan wells and their Christianisation, the role played byecclesiastical history and institutions, the importance of saints' cults, and the social functions of wells in the middle ages.
