Archaeology

Items

Chibbyr Pherick, Ballafreer
Medieval well. A spring in OS Field no 1395 passes through the boundary wall into a green lane at the grid reference given, at which point it was historically drawn off for water. The lane is a public right of way connecting Trollaby Lane to the NE with the main road between Peel and Douglas to the SW. The well is traditionally known as Chibbyr Pherick (St Patrick's Well), implying a holy connection with the keeill which lies 470m to the ENE.
Chibbyr Pherric, St Patricks Well
The waters of St Patricks Well or Chibbyr y Pharick were in the past believed to have curative properties for sore eyes. It was said of this well that people who passed and left nothing in it would not be able to find their way home. This is a perennial spring filling a rocky basin about 30 centimetres deep. A Mrs Druggan who lived nearby described the location and confirmed its name. It is an elongated well, measuring 2.5 x 1.3 metres, scooped out of a bank sloping to the east. The eastern face is 0.9 metres high from the water level. There is no visible trace of stonework. A well worn path with largely modern stone steps approaches the well.
Chibbyr Roney
The site of the early medieval holy well or healing well known as Chibbyr Roney. The water was believed to be good for the eyes, but a round white pebble had to be placed in the well before water was drawn. Canon Quine tells us that it was the traditional well from which the water for baptism was drawn for Marown Church.  The position of the well was described by Mrs Norton of Rahyn Farm as being 200 metres south of Rahyn. During field survey it was noted that a few quartz rocks that were located against the field bank had been churned up by cows. The area was extremely wet and obviously the site of a spring, but no feature describable as a well remained.
Chibbyr Unjin Cooking Place
A hollowed oak 'vessel' was found adjacent to the site of the Chibbyr Unjin holy well in 1932. It was 10 feet 5 inches long and up to two feet wide and was at first thought to be a dug-out canoe. However, a depression about halfway along the vessel had been made artificially, possibly by the continuous action of a running thong, which makes it unlikely to be a canoe.   Excavation of the surrounding area revealed a 'floor' of compacted stones and earth up to ten inches deep. A number of doubtful stone 'tools' of white quartz were also found.  The hollowed log was subsequently considered as 'having no demonstrable relation with the well and it may well have served as a sort of trough for food-preparation in connection with a temporary camp of a hunting community, for charcoal and rough stone implements were found nearby.'  This is therefore a possible burnt mound site of unknown date.
Chibbyr Unjin, Ash Well
Chibbyr Unjin or the Ash Well was a holy well or "rag well", the waters of which were believed to have curative powers. It was the object of folk-observances for many generations and although keeill and well were closely associated in popular belief, the nature of the observances would point to a well-cult antedating the Christian occupation of the site.  It was infilled during agricultural improvement work in 1899. A hollowed oak 'vessel' was found adjacent to the site of the well in 1932. It was 10 feet 5 inches long and up to two feet wide and was at first thought to be a dug-out canoe. However, a depression about halfway along the vessel had been made artificially, possibly by the continuous action of a running thong, which makes it unlikely to be a canoe.  Excavation of the surrounding area revealed a 'floor' of compacted stones and earth up to ten inches deep. A number of doubtful stone 'tools' of white quartz were also found.  The hollowed log was subsequently considered as 'having no demonstrable relation with the well...... and it may well have served as a sort of trough for food-preparation in connection with a temporary camp of a hunting community, for charcoal and rough stone implements were found nearby.' An upper quernstone was found here a year earlier. The field is now grass covered and there is no visible trace of stonework or of a spring.
Chibbyr Vael, St Michaels Well
Chibbyr Vael, or St Michael's Well, was located a few metres west of Keeill Vael, Druidale. It is shown on the 1869 1:2500 Ordnance Scale map.  A systematic search for Chibbyr Vael 'St Michael's Well' was made during the 1979-80 Druidale Survey, prior to the area being flooded for a new reservoir. Two spring lines were examined, one circa 25 metres south and the other circa 50 metres south-west of Keeill Vael. Although not certain, the plan of the latter suggested it was the more likely location of the well. It approximated to the position on the Ordnance Survey map, but no dating evidence was recovered from the vicinity.  The site was covered by a thin strip of boggy ground and was obviously the site of a spring though neither a spring nor a well existed as a visible feature.
Chibbyr Vael, The Fairy Well
The site of a medieval holy well known as Chibbyr Vael, also known as the Holy Well and the Fairy Well, in Crogga Glen. The site was identified by a local informant, Mr Alcock, who stated "I have known the well for 29 years by the name of Fairy Well and have never heard it referred to as a holy well. As far as I know no one visits it and there is no fetish belief connected with it." The well is shown on the 1870 1:10560 scale Ordnance Survey map. The well or spring has been hollowed out in the form of a grotto in the side of a steep hill. It is 1.5 metres wide and recessed 2.3 metres. The waste stone has been thrown over to form a mound in the west. The vertical drop at the present well face is 1.8 metres.  A cemented wall has been built across its face and a modern well door inserted, behind which can be seen a dry water course passing down from the hill top. A well worn path approaches the well from the east and from the west.  The water has been piped to Crogga.
Chibbyr Vreeshey
Chibbyr Vreeshey was located in a field below the site of Keeill Vreeshey. It was described as a built well and about 90 metres from the keeil site. Considerable agricultural activity has taken place in the area in the 20th century with buildings being removed, boundaries reorganised, and the land drained. No trace of a spring has been found in the area and inquiries failed to find anyone who knew of its former existence.
Chibbyr Vreeshey
The site of an early medieval holy well thought to have been associated with the keeill site (PRN 0691.00) at St Bridget's chapel.
Chibbyr y Skooie Holy Well
The site of a medieval holy well.  Chibbyr y Skooie was known as a 'Skoij' well, so called in Ireland as the water was supposed to stop vomiting.  The well consists of a fairly deep unlined hole in the ground from which water can be heard trickling. It was densely overgrown when recorded.  The well was associated with the keeill site at Ballamillgen farm.
Chibbyr y Slaint
The site of an early medieval holy well situated about 50 metres to the east-southeast of the site of a keeill or chapel site at Bellvue.  It is known as Chibbyr y Slaint, or Well of Healing.
Chibbyr-y-woirrey
The site of an early medieval holy well known as Chibbyr Moirrey or Chibbyr y Woirrey, which is shown on the 1870 1:2500 scale Ordnance Survey map.  The site is now occupied by a childrens' playground and no visible trace of the well or of a water course remains.  The dedication marks it as a Holy Well although there is now no use or remembrance of it as such.
Chibbyrt Baltane
Medieval holy well. The Ordnance Survey First Edition 1:2500 map of 1868 records 'Site of Chapel & Burial Ground' with a marker locating the site at SC2000270304. The Manx Archaeological Survey (1968) records a spring, Chibbyrt Baltane, lying about 145m north-west of the keeill site and noted that it was a celebrated 'rag-well' resorted to by rheumatic sufferers, especially around May Day (the festival is Laa'l Boaldyn in Manx). The Survey additionally noted that while Canon Savage recorded an old man's memory of a path formerly leading from the keeill to the well, no such route was visible today. The Survey described the site as a spring rather than a well, with a rough structure of slabs around the point of outflow, forming a square slab-lined 'sump', and stated that it had previously observed and photographed these features in 1927 but could not subsequently trace them in the dense gorse which has since overrun the entire area (and is present still in 2016). The directions provided by the Survey would suggest that the well lies at c SC19897040.
Chibbyrt Balthaine
This holy well is associated with the nearby keeill (PRN 0059). It held an enduring local reputation for the treatment of rheumatism, sufferers of which would leave rags on nearby briars. The site of the spring is not marked on historical or modern maps, and is now lost amongst dense undergrowth. The Manx Archaeological Survey (1968) recorded that the spring was adjacent to a high hedge-bank, approximately 160 yards north east of the keeill, which would tend to suggest the grid reference given here. The Survey noted that the spring had formerly been accessible and that a stone-lined sump had been created to facilitate the collection of water, but that these features could no longer be found in the undergrowth. The Survey suggests that the name is derived from the Manx 'Laa'l Boaldyn' (the May festival, Beltane), at which time, despite its pagan associations, the ruined keeill site was also visited.
Childrens Home, Glencrutchery Flint Site
The findspot of an early prehistoric flint scatter.
Childrens Home, Glencrutchery Flint Site
The findspot of an early prehistoric flint scatter.
Christ Church Laxey
A post-medieval church in Laxey.
Church Farm
Site of outbuilding, originally constructed before 1868 (present on Ordnance Survey 1:2500 1st edition map of that date). The structure is still present on early photographs after the construction of the current stone barn, but has since been demolished. Church Farm as a whole was acquired by the Manx Museum and National Trust in 1988.
Church Farm
Modern outbuilding. Outbuilding east of farmhouse, originally constructed before 1868 (present on Ordnance Survey 1:2500 First Edition map of that date). Church Farm as a whole was acquired by the Manx Museum and National Trust in 1988.
Church Farm
Site of modern outbuilding. Site of outbuilding, originally constructed before 1868 (present on Ordnance Survey 1:2500 First Edition map of that date). The structure appears, on the evidence of old photographs, to have been demolished to allow the construction of the stone barn still present on the site a little to the east. Church Farm as a whole was acquired by the Manx Museum and National Trust in 1988.
Church Farm
Site of modern outbuilding. Site of outbuilding, originally constructed before 1868 (present on Ordnance Survey 1:2500 1st edition map of that date). The structure is still present on early photographs after the construction of the current stone barn, but has since been demolished. Church Farm as a whole was acquired by the Manx Museum and National Trust in 1988.
Church Farm
Modern outlbuilding. Stone cow byre and barn constructed after 1868 (not present on Ordnance Survey 1:2500 1st edition map of that date). Church Farm as a whole was acquired by the Manx Museum and National Trust in 1988.
Church Farm
Site of modern outbuilding. Prefabricated modern agricultural barn built during 1970s. The barn was demolished in 2016. Church Farm as a whole was acquired by the Manx Museum and National Trust in 1988.
Church Farm House
A two-storey, double-fronted house.  The rear roofslope of the house extends to form a catslide roof over a dairy, and a staircase providing access to the first floor.  It is not clear whether the rear accommodation is original, or created as an extension.   The property, including farm buildings and land, was acquired by the Manx Museum and National Trust in 1988.  The ground floor rooms of the house have been restored to illustrate the interior of a typical small quarterland farmhouse.