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| Avalon Gate |
Mysteriously elegant. Magically artful.
Chalice Well is a holy
well situated at the foot of Glastonbury Tor in the county of Somerset,
England. The natural spring and surrounding gardens are owned and
managed by the Chalice Well Trust, founded by Wellesley Tudor Pole in
1959.
Archaeological evidence suggests that the well has been in
almost constant use for at least two thousand years. Water issues from
the spring at a rate of 25,000 gallons per day and has never failed,
even during drought. Iron oxide deposits give water a reddish hue, as
dissolved ferrous oxide becomes oxidized at the surface and is
precipitated. Like the hot springs in nearby Bath, the water is believed
to possess healing qualities.
In addition to the legends
associated with Glastonbury, the Well is often portrayed as a symbol of
the female aspect of deity, with the male symbolised by Glastonbury Tor.
As such, it is a popular destination for pilgrims in search of the
divine feminine, including Neopagans. The Well is however popular with
all faiths and in 2001 became a World Peace Garden.
Wells often
feature in Welsh and Irish mythology as gateways to the spirit world.
The overlapping of the inner and outer worlds is represented by the well
cover, designed by the church architect and archaeologist Frederick
Bligh Bond and presented as a gift after the Great War in 1919. The two
interlocking circles constitute the symbol known as the Vesica Piscis.
The
most famous example in nature of the vesica piscis during a total solar
eclipse, when Moon's apparent size is the same as that of the Sun. As
the Moon moves to cover the Sun, at a certain moment it forms a vesica
piscis. In many ancient cultures, the Sun was a male god and the Moon a
goddess, and the vesica piscis symbolized an opening or gateway between
these two polarities through which creation can take place. The ancient
Egyptians practiced sacred geometry based on "As above, so below".
Architects and artists copied the solar eclipse/vesica piscis and its
mathematics in their sacred buildings and artwork to reflect their
religious beliefs. This ancient tradition was passed on through the
centuries by the Freemasons.
In the well lid design, a spear or a
sword bisects these two circles, a possible reference to Excalibur, the
sword of the legendary King Arthur, believed by some to be buried at
the nearby Glastonbury Abbey. Foliage represents the Glastonbury Holy
Thorn. Bligh Bond wrote that the vesica design for the well cover was
"typical of many early diagrams, all having the same object – the
rendering of spiritual truth by means of the purest, most intellectual
system of imagery conceived by the mind, namely, truth which is
‘aeonial’ or eternal, of which geometry is the best interpreter, since
it can figure for us with remarkable suggestiveness those formative
principles upon which the Father has built his Creation, principles
which shall endure when heaven and earth have died ." (Ref. Central
Somerset Gazette, Friday, November 14, 1919)
Exquisitely
beautiful, adorned with a silver Chalice Well amulet hung on thrice
wrapped black cord, mottled tealed blue
AVALON GATE is handcrafted with
premium all natural paraffin wax, pure cotton wick, and generously
scented with a fresh water spring blend of Daylily, Abalone, Lime,
Ozonic, Sea Spray Accord, Rose, Jasmine, Freesia, Lily, Beach Daisy,
Woods, Musk, Marine. Ethereal and mysterious, the magical aroma of
exquisite AVALON GATE will fill the air of your sacred space even as it
stands unlit - the powerful fragrance and scent throw of this amazing
candle is simply stunning!
This powerfully potent and extraordinary pillar measures 2 x 3 inches. Each candle exhibits a uniquely mottled crystal pattern.
