St Quintigern's Fountain, Kirsenin Well, Lilliesleaf

Grid reference

NT 540 251 (accurate position)

Six-figure easting & northing

354000 625100

Latitude

55.51747403195963

Longitude

-2.7285869465913217

Altitude (metres)

250

County

Roxburghshire

Nearby places

Lilliesleaf, parish (0.14 miles)

Longnewton, former parish, Ancrum (2.67 miles)

Ringan's Dean, Bowden (3.18 miles)

Bowden, parish (3.22 miles)

Ladywood Edge, Selkirk (3.37 miles)

Object Classification

Water

Is linear feature?

No

Notes

The NGR given is for the un-named well on OS maps, which lies in the moss below the church, 220 m to the SE. From NMRS: "An entry in the Register of Sasines for 1816 concerning the village of Lilliesleaf reads... sixteen acres with the tower, fortalice and Manor place on the west of the fountain called St. Quintigern's fountain. No well in the village bears any saint's name. There remains one possibility. In the moss, below the church and near the farm, is the spring which, Dr. Sym says, was once known as the Kersenin Well ... May it not be that Kersenin is a corruption of Kentigern? (J Mackenzie 1949)". While the Kirsenin Well and St Quintigern's Fountain (1816) MAY be the same place, there is no certainty about this. 'Kirsenin' is not a likely 'corruption of Kentigern', but probably represents the Scots word for 'Christening', and this may reflect the fact that this is the closest spring to the kirk to where its water ws brought for baptisms. We cannot be certain that the Kirsenin Well is the same place as St Quintigern's Fountain, but it remains a possibility.

http://canmore.rcahms.gov.uk/

Relationships with other parishes

Within Lilliesleaf, parish

Within Lilliesleaf, parish