Well-dressings at Tissington, Ashford in the Water, and Youlgreave

Spring is the time for Derbyshire villagers to decorate thier wells and springs with flowers. The origins of the tradition are lost in time but there's generally a consensus that it gves thanks for the purity of water which was believed to have kept villages safe during times of plague.

Whatever the origins today it's a chance to see an artistic tradition still taking place, and visit some, if not all, of the pretty Derbyshire villages involved. There are frequently fairs and flower festivals taking place at the same time, with sleepy villages becoming quite busy for a few days.

Tissington Hall

Usually I'd add on a walk in the surrounding countryside but this spring the weather has been so warm that I settled for enjoying the views from the car park
 

Youlgreave church 

Church at Ashford in the Water which
 holds a flower festival to coincide
with the well-dressings

Something that's lovely to see is the encouragement of younger generations. Several places have a special Children's Well for which the decorations are created by the schoolchildren of the village, hopefully keeping the tradition alive for years to come. 

Ashford in the Water Welldressings

Ashford in the Water is a picturesque stone-built Derbyshire village on the river Wye, just outside Bakewell.  For most of the year it's a quiet place but 10 days or so in June sees a sudden influx of visitors flocking to the well-dressings. We went late afternoon mid-week, and certainly weren't the only people there (perhaps we all thought it would be quieter then).

Well-dressing is a Derbyshire tradition, the origins of which are lost in time but generally considered to be a way of giving thanks for clean water. Some villages have been decorating their wells for centuries; for some it's a modern revival. 

By the side or behind the well stands a frame packed with clay into which flowers, leaves and pebbles are pressed in the form of a mosaic, and the designs change from year to year.

Of Ashford's six wells only four were decorated this year. Two followed the same theme of a celebration of C S Lewis, one was a representation of Ashford in years gone by, and the last a reproduction of Picasso's Guernica painting as a reminder of the ongoing war in Ukraine. 

 

Also worth visiting when in Ashford is the ford by sheepwash bridge. Once, sheep were swum across the river here, the dunking helping to rid them of dirt and flies; today it's a pretty spot to sit a while or paddle. 

For photos from Tissington weel-dressings a couple of weeks ago see here

Tissington Welldressings

Late Spring brings |Derbyshire well-dressing time, traditionally starting in Tissington at Ascension, followed over the succeeding months by displays in many  towns and villages across the county. Tradition says that they were originally erected to give thanks to the pure water from the wells which saved the villagers from the Black Death, and in most places a church service is held blessing the wells.  

The mosaics are created with flowers, leaves and coloured stones pressed into a clay backing board, often with religious themes, or commemorations of important events - or as in this case a combination of the two; Jacob's Dream at Bethel and Walt Disney.

more Walt Disney

We visited Tissington on the last day of the displays, and after a week of dry sunny weather the clay was beginning to crack. The displays were still lovely though.

 

A few weeks later, I visited Ashford in the Water welldressings - see here 

Youlgreave - well-dressings and walking

After Tissington and Ashford in the Water, out third well-dressings visit of the year was to the village of  Youlgreave, or Youlgrave if you prefer; I've recently seen both spellings in use on maps, road signs, village notice boards

The decorations there seemed to have a linking theme of environmental issues from plagues of frogs to the destruction of habitat by the palm oil industry

This one depicts evolution - ending with the burning up of the Earth as foretold in the old Testament - a well-designed plaque with a chilling message.

















Even the children's well at the school symbolised how we're all linked together - and ultimately what harms one of us, harms all.















Youlgreave's a long stretched out village, with the wells fairly evenly spaced along the main street, so part way along we stopped for a little refreshment (cake), and a side tour up on to the moor to take in the views.

Then, having finished viewing the wells, we headed downhill to Bradford Dale for a short walk by the river, though we possibly ended up sitting for longer than we walked, as it's such a lovely, tranquil spot.