Today, March 5th, is St Piran’s day and just two miles from 5 Valency Row is St Piran’s Well.
St Piran is a likable saint because between the miracles his stories betray a certain amount of bungling to which we can all relate. His major claim to fame is that one day he was a bit too enthusiastic when building the fire in his fireplace, which became so hot he broke his hearthstone. However, in the intense heat, from St Piran’s black hearthstone there flowed a white cross of molten tin. This rediscovery of tin smelting, a skill that had been lost with the Romans, led to three things:
- St Piran became the Patron Saint of Tin-Miners and one of three Patron Saints of Cornwall (the other two being St Michael and St Petroc).
- The flag of St Piran with a white cross on a black background became the Cornish Flag.
- The celebrations that followed the discovery were so epic they have been immortalised in the term to be as drunk as a Perraner.
St Piran came to Cornwall after having annoyed his previous employer so much he was literally thrown out of Ireland. St Piran had been an advisor to King Aengus of Munster. The last straw came when Aengus wanted to marry a young and beautiful courtier. St Piran pointed out the immorality of locking up his existing long-standing wife, Queen Aisnin, in order to do so. The King and his cohorts chained a millstone around St Piran’s neck and rolled him from the top of a hill, launching him over a cliff into the sea.
By a miracle the millstone floated, the chains fell away and St Piran sailed away landing at Perranzabuloe, a sandy beach near Perranporth. As such, St Piran is mostly associated with places further west into Cornwall, so what is his holy well doing here in Trevethy?
It is said that St Piran died (aged 206 years) falling down a well, but that was not this one. The Doomsday book records that monks of St Piran owned a monastery nearby. This well structure is not that ancient although it is quite possible that a well being on this site is. A nearby information board says that the present well was recorded in 1880 and was built around a slate support for an adjoining open-fronted cart shed. Old photos show shelves inside the well suggesting that it was used for domestic purposes.
St Piran’s well is located at the entrance to an enjoyable walk along St Nectan’s Glen to St Nectan’s Kiev, a beautiful area where a waterfall tumbles through a circular rock formation that can be seen on payment of a fee. There is also a gift shop and café there and its carpark can be used to visit the well.