{"id":{"repo_id":"uwtsd","oai_identifier":"oai:repository.uwtsd.ac.uk:4118"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/uwtsd/oai:repository.uwtsd.ac.uk:4118","repository":{"repo_id":"uwtsd","name":"University of Wales Trinity Saint David","base_url":"https://repository.uwtsd.ac.uk/cgi/oai2"},"display":{"title":"Founts of Knowledge: An Archaeological Ethnography of Four Sacred Wellsprings in Glamorgan, Wales","abstract":"Sacred wells and springs in Wales are well-evidenced as heritage sites of contemporary ritual significance in reception of earlier traditions (Holmes, 2020; Jones, 1954). They are associated with likely early medieval provenance and contextualised by ancient and prehistoric ritual practices at similar water sources (Huws, 2022; Ray, 2020). Despite strong evidence of medieval saintly associations, late modern ritual, and ongoing use, however, the site-biographies of many specific Welsh wellsprings are muddied. The length and variety of their possible use periods, post-Reformation erosion, and an ambiguous archaeological record make many wellsprings complex subjects (Roberts, 2011; Seaman, 2020). In an attempt to account for this complexity, this study synthesises archaeological and ethnographic approaches to consider four case study wellsprings in Glamorgan in multitemporal context (Hamilakis, 2011). Through an ‘archaeological-ethnographic landscape survey’ (AELS), an analysis is developed considering the interplay of a range of historical periods of magico-religious significance and contemporary use (Hamilakis, 2011). References to archaeological ethnography emphasise themes of materiality and object agency, ontological reflexivity, and experiences of liminality (Bennet, 2010; Chadwick, 2012; Foley, 2013; Latour, 2005). Supplementing sparse archaeological data with ethnographic methods is found to be interpretively generative, although AELS may be a more effective contributor to more intensive archaeological research.","abstract_html":"Sacred wells and springs in Wales are well-evidenced as heritage sites of contemporary ritual significance in reception of earlier traditions (Holmes, 2020; Jones, 1954). They are associated with likely early medieval provenance and contextualised by ancient and prehistoric ritual practices at similar water sources (Huws, 2022; Ray, 2020). Despite strong evidence of medieval saintly associations, late modern ritual, and ongoing use, however, the site-biographies of many specific Welsh wellsprings are muddied. The length and variety of their possible use periods, post-Reformation erosion, and an ambiguous archaeological record make many wellsprings complex subjects (Roberts, 2011; Seaman, 2020). In an attempt to account for this complexity, this study synthesises archaeological and ethnographic approaches to consider four case study wellsprings in Glamorgan in multitemporal context (Hamilakis, 2011). Through an ‘archaeological-ethnographic landscape survey’ (AELS), an analysis is developed considering the interplay of a range of historical periods of magico-religious significance and contemporary use (Hamilakis, 2011). References to archaeological ethnography emphasise themes of materiality and object agency, ontological reflexivity, and experiences of liminality (Bennet, 2010; Chadwick, 2012; Foley, 2013; Latour, 2005). Supplementing sparse archaeological data with ethnographic methods is found to be interpretively generative, although AELS may be a more effective contributor to more intensive archaeological research.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Blewett, Jacob William"],"institution":"University of Wales Trinity Saint David","degree_name":"ma","degree_level":"masters","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2025,"date_issued":"2025-08","date_published":"2025-08","updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:53:11Z","subjects":["BL Crefydd","DA Prydain Fawr"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.grantnumber","label":"Dc Identifier Grantnumber","values":["UWTSD"],"render_values":[{"text":"UWTSD","href":null,"code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://doi.org/10.82227/repository.uwtsd.ac.uk.00004118","outbound_label":"DOI","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.doi"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.sponsor","label":"Sponsor","values":["University of Wales Trinity Saint David"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Blewett, Jacob William"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2025-08-21"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2025-08"]},{"key":"dc:publisher.commercial","label":"Dc Publisher Commercial","values":["University of Wales Trinity Saint David"]},{"key":"dc:publisher.department","label":"Dc Publisher Department","values":["Traethodau Meistr","Institute of Education and Humanities: Humanities and Social Sciences"]},{"key":"dc:publisher.institution","label":"Dc Publisher Institution","values":["University of Wales Trinity Saint David"]},{"key":"dc:relation.isreferencedby","label":"Dc Relation Isreferencedby","values":["https://repository.uwtsd.ac.uk/id/eprint/4118/"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Gosodiad"]},{"key":"dc:type.qualificationlevel","label":"Dc Type Qualificationlevel","values":["masters"]},{"key":"dc:type.qualificationname","label":"Dc Type Qualificationname","values":["ma"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["BL Crefydd","DA Prydain Fawr"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.doi","label":"DOI","values":["10.82227/repository.uwtsd.ac.uk.00004118"]},{"key":"dc:identifier.grantnumber","label":"Dc Identifier Grantnumber","values":["UWTSD"]},{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["https://repository.uwtsd.ac.uk/id/eprint/4118/1/Blewett_JW_MA_Thesis.pdf"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Sacred wells and springs in Wales are well-evidenced as heritage sites of contemporary ritual significance in reception of earlier traditions (Holmes, 2020; Jones, 1954). They are associated with likely early medieval provenance and contextualised by ancient and prehistoric ritual practices at similar water sources (Huws, 2022; Ray, 2020). Despite strong evidence of medieval saintly associations, late modern ritual, and ongoing use, however, the site-biographies of many specific Welsh wellsprings are muddied. The length and variety of their possible use periods, post-Reformation erosion, and an ambiguous archaeological record make many wellsprings complex subjects (Roberts, 2011; Seaman, 2020). In an attempt to account for this complexity, this study synthesises archaeological and ethnographic approaches to consider four case study wellsprings in Glamorgan in multitemporal context (Hamilakis, 2011). Through an ‘archaeological-ethnographic landscape survey’ (AELS), an analysis is developed considering the interplay of a range of historical periods of magico-religious significance and contemporary use (Hamilakis, 2011). References to archaeological ethnography emphasise themes of materiality and object agency, ontological reflexivity, and experiences of liminality (Bennet, 2010; Chadwick, 2012; Foley, 2013; Latour, 2005). Supplementing sparse archaeological data with ethnographic methods is found to be interpretively generative, although AELS may be a more effective contributor to more intensive archaeological research."]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["text"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Founts of Knowledge: An Archaeological Ethnography of Four Sacred Wellsprings in Glamorgan, Wales"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.sponsor":["University of Wales Trinity Saint David"],"dc:creator":["Blewett, Jacob William"],"dc:date":["2025-08-21"],"dc:date.issued":["2025-08"],"dc:description.abstract":["Sacred wells and springs in Wales are well-evidenced as heritage sites of contemporary ritual significance in reception of earlier traditions (Holmes, 2020; Jones, 1954). They are associated with likely early medieval provenance and contextualised by ancient and prehistoric ritual practices at similar water sources (Huws, 2022; Ray, 2020). Despite strong evidence of medieval saintly associations, late modern ritual, and ongoing use, however, the site-biographies of many specific Welsh wellsprings are muddied. The length and variety of their possible use periods, post-Reformation erosion, and an ambiguous archaeological record make many wellsprings complex subjects (Roberts, 2011; Seaman, 2020). In an attempt to account for this complexity, this study synthesises archaeological and ethnographic approaches to consider four case study wellsprings in Glamorgan in multitemporal context (Hamilakis, 2011). Through an ‘archaeological-ethnographic landscape survey’ (AELS), an analysis is developed considering the interplay of a range of historical periods of magico-religious significance and contemporary use (Hamilakis, 2011). References to archaeological ethnography emphasise themes of materiality and object agency, ontological reflexivity, and experiences of liminality (Bennet, 2010; Chadwick, 2012; Foley, 2013; Latour, 2005). Supplementing sparse archaeological data with ethnographic methods is found to be interpretively generative, although AELS may be a more effective contributor to more intensive archaeological research."],"dc:format":["text"],"dc:identifier.doi":["10.82227/repository.uwtsd.ac.uk.00004118"],"dc:identifier.grantnumber":["UWTSD"],"dc:identifier.uri":["https://repository.uwtsd.ac.uk/id/eprint/4118/1/Blewett_JW_MA_Thesis.pdf"],"dc:publisher.commercial":["University of Wales Trinity Saint David"],"dc:publisher.department":["Traethodau Meistr","Institute of Education and Humanities: Humanities and Social Sciences"],"dc:publisher.institution":["University of Wales Trinity Saint David"],"dc:relation.isreferencedby":["https://repository.uwtsd.ac.uk/id/eprint/4118/"],"dc:subject":["BL Crefydd","DA Prydain Fawr"],"dc:title":["Founts of Knowledge: An Archaeological Ethnography of Four Sacred Wellsprings in Glamorgan, Wales"],"dc:type":["Gosodiad"],"dc:type.qualificationlevel":["masters"],"dc:type.qualificationname":["ma"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:53:11Z"}