440 CORNISH DEDICATIONS. 



S. Adwen, Virgin. 



In the " Inquisitio Nonarum," she is entered as S. 

 Athewenna. The parish of Advent is locally called S. Anne 

 or S. Tane. Leland (Col. IV, 153) gives Adwen as one of King 

 Brychan's children who settled in N. Corn-wall. He derived 

 this from a legend of S. Nectan preserved at Hartland. So does 

 William of Worcester from a notice of Brychan he found at S. 

 Michael's Mount. Among the daughters of Brychan known by 

 the Welsh there is but one who can by any possibility be 

 identified with her, and that is Dwynwen, and Mr. W. Copeland 

 Borlase conjectured that the chapel of Advent was originally 

 Llandwynwen. 



S. Dwynwen was invoked by disconsolate lovers. She and 

 Maelor Dafodril fell desperately in love with each other, but 

 when he paid his addresses to her, in a spirit of levity or 

 perverseness she flouted him, and he retired deeply offended. 

 She constantly hoped that he would return, but he did not. 

 Instead, he published slanders about her. She was miserable, 

 partly because of these idle tales, partly because she loved him 

 still. Then, in her distress, she prayed to be relieved of her 

 passion, and an angel appeared and administered to her some 

 drops of a heavenly elixir, and at once her heart was cured of 

 love sickness. Next the angel administered the same medicine 

 to Maelor, and he was frozen up into a lump of ice. God now 

 gave to Dwynwen three requests which he undertook to fulfil. 

 So she asked to have Maelor melted, and it was so. Then she 

 asked that all true-hearted lovers who invoked her aid might 

 either obtain their desire, or become indifferent. This was 

 granted. Lastly she asked that she might never again hanker 

 after marriage. 



Then she became a religious woman and ascetic. There 

 was a gilded image of her at Llandwynwen in Anglesey, to 

 which many lovers in old times resorted. 



In the lolo MSS. a poem to her by David ap Gwilym is 

 given, which may be thus rendered : — 



Tear-bedewed Dwynwen, essence of beauty, 

 Truly resplendent, golden thine image, 

 Daughter of Flamgwyr's sacred enclosure ! 

 He who by tongues of malicious ones wounded 

 He that keeps wake, all guileless of purpose, 

 thou refulgent one, here at thine altar 

 May he depart hence, healed of his heartache ! 



