Photonique

• St Ann's Holy Well At St Anne's
• St John The Baptist Cemetery In Clontarf
• Iglesia Ni Cristo 2-4 University Avenue Belfast
• Stranmillis Embankment And The Contrast At The River Edge
• The East Bank Stretch Of The Lagan Opposite the Gasworks
• Grosvenor Road In Belfast
• More Like Living in Revelations Than in England
• Dividers By Vivien Burnside
• This Monument Is Not Made From Metal
• Camouflaged Art
• Ultra Wide Angle Views Of Samson And Goliath
• Examples Of Street Art
• The Searcher Sculpture At CS Lewis Square
• Heavy Metal Titanic Sign
• The Balbriggan Rust Buckets 23 June 2026

NOT A WISHING WELL DESPITE THE SIGNS

THE LEGACY CATALOG

* In The Year 2008 * In The Year 2011 * In The Year 2017 * Henrietta Back In 2010

Despite a nearby sign claiming it to be a "wishing well", St Ann’s Well bears no resemblance to the idyllic, bucket-and-pulley structures found in children's storybooks. Instead, the structure is the stone canopy of a disused holy well—its spring having run dry in the 1950s. The complete absence of coins inside the stone recess suggests that most visitors remain equally unconvinced by the modern wishing well label.

• Photographing the now dry holy well presents a minor challenge due to the dense canopy of surrounding trees, which keeps the stonework in deep shade throughout the day.

Historical Context & Restoration

• Located within St Anne’s Park—Dublin’s second-largest municipal park and the former estate of the Guinness family—the well is situated just beyond the old artificial lake, near the Roman temple folly and below the Watchtower, close to the main coastal entrance.

• Historically a revered holy well, St Ann's Well gave its name (with a slightly altered spelling) to the surrounding St Anne's estate. Note: In religious tradition, both names refer to the exact same figure: Saint Anne (from Hebrew Ḥannāh, meaning "grace"), mother of Mary.

• The original spring dried up in the 1950s due to urban development and alterations in the local water table. Although Dublin City Council made several attempts to locate and redirect the source, the well remains dry. Despite this, the site retains local heritage significance; in July 2000, it hosted an ecumenical procession with parishioners from both the local Roman Catholic and Church of Ireland churches. In early 2018, specialist contractors cleared accumulated soil and vegetation, rediscovered the original opening, and installed a protective safety grille to keep out falling leaves and debris.

Holy Well vs. "Wishing Well"

• The board designating the site as a wishing well stems from a community storytelling trail created by Transition Year students from Ardscoil La Salle in partnership with Fighting Words and Dublin City Council. While such creative initiatives are well-intentioned for younger park visitors, "wishing wells" are essentially an Anglo-American fairytale trope rather than an authentic Irish tradition.

Ireland’s heritage rests on thousands of ancient holy wells (Tobar Naofa), historically associated with healing rituals, saint veneration, and offerings like clooties (cloth strips) or small pins—not tossing coins for personal wishes. While a bit of imaginative storytelling in a park is harmless enough, presented on official-looking signage without historical context, it risks blurring the line between local folklore and genuine history. An accurate account of St Ann's Well and its origins as a sacred spring offers a far richer connection to Dublin's past.

RELATED PHOTO GALLERIES

• Old Graveyard In Clontarf
• Old Church And Graveyard In Dundonald
• Holy Trinity Church In Cork City
• Bohermore Cemetery In Galway
• St Marys Church In Maynooth

A SELECTION OF HIGH RESOLUTION PHOTO GALLERIES

* Clontarf Railway Station * Docklands Railway Station * Malahide Railway Station