Although the Harry Potter saga is finished, for now at least, it seems that it just keeps on giving – this time in the form of a nine hundred year old holy well that was recently discovered in the basement of a building used as a movie set for the Harry Potter films.
London’s Australia House is a once-sacred site in medieval times that was often used by monks, and a building with arcane marble architecture that just reeks of intrigue and an aura of old magic, became internationally famous as the site of some memorable scenes in the Harry Potter movies.
Recently however, it has been in the news for something else, and that is the fact that a scientific investigation uncovered a hidden well in the basement that is believed to be approximately 900 years old, hearkening back to Celtic times. What is even more incredible is that the well is still full of potable spring water.
Apparently there are around twenty such wells throughout London, all covered up by various structures and roads centuries ago and largely forgotten. Unfortunately the locations of very few of these springs are known, and there are even fewer that are accessible, which makes the discovery of the “Harry Potter well†even more unique.
The spring is fed by the Fleet River, after which London’s Fleet Street was named, a subterranean creek that today runs under the streets of London and is largely forgotten.
The spring was discovered after notes by a medieval monk that referred to the water from the spring as being sweet, wholesome and clear were found. It is believed that this particular well held some holy significance at one time.
While the Fleet River was pure and sweet during Celtic times, it was noxious and polluted in Roman and Anglo Saxon times, which is most probably why there was no problem in covering the springs that it supplied. Today however, according to tests done by the Latis Scientific laboratory, the water is clear of E. coli, Enterococci and Clostridium perfringens, and tastes better than tap water.
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