Prehistory
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The Chalice Well: Where Glastonbury's Grail Rests
The Tradition: Having settled in Ynys Witrin (Glastonbury) and founded the first religious community in Britain, St. Joseph of Arimathea buried the Holy Grail deep in the hillside of Glastonbury Tor in order to safe-guard it from thieves and robbers. A miraculous spring welled up at this very spot. The water runs through the grail before reaching the surface stained red with the blood of Christ.
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Possible
interpretations: Though St. Joseph is said to have
brought the Grail to Britain, it is rarely
connected with his monastery of Glastonbury
except in purely local legend. The water in the
Chalice Well Gardens, below the Tor, certainly
runs red, but this is mundanely explained by the
red Iron Oxide minerals in the Glastonbury soil.