²⁰Moore, Fr. Patrick. "The Tobernacogany Holy Well." Personal interview. 3 July 1998.
Whether or not the holy wells of Ireland inherited their Christian sanctity from earlier pagan practices at the wells is a matter of some controversy. Some authors consider the evidence to the affirmative "very meager." (Carroll, Michael P. Irish Pilgrimage: Holy Wells and Popular Catholic Devotion. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins UP, 1999. 55-57. A differing perspective is offered by other authors: "Ancient rituals - among them the cult of wells, trees and stones - were allowed to continue much as before, though now under a Christian label, with the lore and venerations of saints replacing the cult of deities." (Zucchelli, Christine. Stones of Adoration Sacred Stones and Mystic Megaliths of Ireland. Doughcloyne, Wilton, Cork: Collins, 2007. 69.)