By Elizabeth Hunter
An ancient well, older than Christianity, hidden for centuries in a cathedral crypt, has been given a stunning mosaic makeover.
The well in Glasgow Cathedral was once a place of deep spiritual significance – but had become ‘forgotten’ until this year.
It is where St Kentigern, also known as Mungo, established his cell in the 6th century and performed baptisms in the waters below.
The natural well was later incorporated into the walls of Glasgow Cathedral, forming the heart of the Kentigern Shrine in the crypt.
Over the centuries, this sacred site grew in prominence, becoming one of Britain’s major pilgrimage destinations for more than 300 years.
The well not only predates Christianity as a sacred site, but also symbolically and literally marks the starting point of what would become the city of Glasgow.
In October it was revived under the lead of archaeologist Prof Stephen Driscoll from the University of Glasgow.
After it was rediscovered, it was given a mosaic makeover and now glows bright blue.
Experts excavated the well, before the Aproxima Creative Collective revamped the it- turning it into a mosaic of over 1,000 glass tiles in shades of blues and green, all inlaid with gold leaf.
Creative director Angus Farquhar told the BBC: “I saw that little well in the corner with no signage and it had just been forgotten and I thought wouldn’t it be incredible to bring this back as a gift for the people of Glasgow.
“It had not been touched for 70 years and we found coins from all over the world, rings, thimbles, tiny pieces of shell with people’s names written on them and we realized that it had still been used as a little point of blessing even though there was no signage there and it was dark.
“The idea that we could bring it back became really exciting and just two weeks ago with the support of Historic Environment Scotland we drained out the last of the water and cleaned the bottom of the well where we’d done the excavation and for the first time probably in one or two centuries, the water ran clear again.”
It will now be the focus of a series of concerts and events to celebrate 850 years of the city of Glasgow.
The mosaic colors are designed to represent water and the greens of nature
The mosaic installation, simply called The Well, has been brought to life by the Aproxima Creative Collective team, including Scottish artist Joanna Kessel.
She said the tiles, made at the Orsoni Venezia 1888 furnace in Italy, were used back-to-front to give the colors she wanted.
