Saints in Scottish Place-Names
Funded by a Leverhulme Trust Project Grant
St Magnus Well, Birsay (Orkney)
Grid reference
HY 256 274 (accurate position)
Six-figure easting & northing
325500 102740
Latitude
59.12731549654058
Longitude
-3.3017154817987775
Altitude (metres)
15
County
Orkney
Nearby places
Manswell (0.06 miles)
Birsay, former parish, Birsay & Harray (0.53 miles)
Christ Kirk, Birsay (0.53 miles)
St Peter's Chapel, Brough of Birsay (1.2 miles)
St Peter's Church, Sandwick (Orkney) (4.89 miles)
Object Classification
Water
Is linear feature?
No
Notes
A modern sign beside the well reads: "Mans Well. Water from this ancient well which never runs dry was, according to legend, used to wash the remains of Magnus Erlendson - Saint Magnus - prior to his canonization. He was murdered in Egilsay at Eastertime, circa 1116, and interred at Christchurch, Birsay, before being moved to Kirkwall c. 1137. "
Relationships with other parishes
Within Birsay & Harray
Within Birsay, former parish, Birsay & Harray (formerly)
Names
1 head-name linked to this place ?St Magnus Well
Head name
St Magnus Well
Place
St Magnus Well, Birsay (Orkney)
The status of this name is
Current
Is this a current OS form? ?
Yes
Is this the original referent of the place?
Yes
Is the association of this name to this object hypothetical?
No
St Magnus's Well 1843, OS 6 inch first edn.
Historic formSt Magnus's Well Head nameSt Magnus Well PlaceSt Magnus Well, Birsay (Orkney) Certainty that this name applies to this placeCertain SourceOS 6 inch first edn. Date of citation1843 x 1882 Notes on the context of this place-nameMid to late 19th c. |
Source code
OS 6 inch first edn.
Source title
Ordnance Survey 6 Inch to the Mile, First Edition
Notes
Mid to late 19th c.
Mans Well 2017
Historic formMans Well Head nameSt Magnus Well PlaceSt Magnus Well, Birsay (Orkney) Certainty that this name applies to this placeCertain Date of citation2017 x 2017 |
Mans Well 2017
Historic formMans Well Head nameSt Magnus Well PlaceSt Magnus Well, Birsay (Orkney) Certainty that this name applies to this placeCertain Date of citation2017 x 2017 |
Author
Taylor, Simon
Source title
Iona Abbots in Scottish Place-Names
Editors
Dauvit Broun and Thomas Owen Clancy
Pages
35-70
Volume
Spes Scotorum, Hope of Scots:
Year
1999
Mans Well 2017
Historic formMans Well Head nameSt Magnus Well PlaceSt Magnus Well, Birsay (Orkney) Certainty that this name applies to this placeCertain Date of citation2017 x 2017 |
Saints in this place-name
Magnus (ns) (certain)
Magnus of Orkney, martyr (certain)
Place-name data
The place-name data featured in this resource is copyright of the University of Glasgow.
Map Layers
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Default map:
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Satellite map:
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Satellite map with labels:
Base map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, CC-BY-SA, Imagery © Mapbox
Modern OS map:
Ordnance Survey OpenData. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right (2010)
OS 1840-1880 map:
National Library of Scotland Historic Maps
OS 1920-1933 map:
National Library of Scotland Historic Maps
