Glastonbury and the Holy Grail

The Holy Grail usually refers to the chalice used at Christ's Last Supper. In many stories, the chalice was filled with the blood and/or sweat of Jesus from his crucifixion, and then brought to Glastonbury by Joseph of Arimathea and his followers.

According to legend, St. Phillip sent Joseph of Arimathea and twelve of his followers to Glastonbury. This group arrived shortly after Jesus' death, when Glastonbury was a small island, "The Island of Glass," on the edge of the sea.

The Glastonbury Thorn

As Joseph stepped from his ship, he planted his recently cut walking staff in the ground and left it there. In time, it sprouted, took root and grew into the "Glastonbury Thorn." That thorn bush still lives on Wearyall Hill in Glastonbury.

(Note: This plant is not native to England, but to Syria. The plant's formal name is Crateagus Monogyna Praecox. This particular thorn bush-and the bushes created from its cuttings-flower twice a year: at Christmas and later in the Spring. Other, similar thorns flower only in the spring.)

The Grail, and Chalice Well

Shortly after arriving, Joseph buried Jesus' chalice near a passage to the Otherworld. According to one legend, "Blood Spring" emerged from the spot, and since then has flowed with reddish water, like the blood in the chalice.

According to another legend, the red "Blood Spring," and its sister, the White Spring, already existed long before Joseph's visit. Limestone in the water of the White Spring provides its milky color, just as iron colors the red water from Blood Spring. It is very unusual to have two colored springs next to each other. To many, this confirms the likelihood that Glastonbury is, indeed, spiritually significant.

Blood Spring's reddish water runs underground today (the spring was partially covered in a 13th century earthquake) to Chalice Well, in a lovely garden near the center of the town of Glastonbury.

The water at Chalice Well is legendary. Pilgrims can drink from the reddish water that rushes from a lion's head fixture at Chalice Well, or-when the Well grounds are closed-draw water from a spout at the gate.

Is the Holy Grail truly buried at the foundation of Chalice Well? The miracles of the Well suggest that it is. The gate is decorated with crutches and other evidence of the healings at the Well.

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