Along the road from Long Hai Commune Center toward the wind-farm area, about 50 meters to the left of Long Hai Secondary School and at the foot of a hillside, lies an ancient well known as Giếng Tiên. This large, stone-built well is believed to have been constructed in the 15th century by the first settlers who arrived on Phu Quy Island. It has been classified by Phu Quy District as a heritage site in need of protection.
The size and structure of the well suggest that it once served a sizeable early community—possibly even connected to one or more Cham Pa religious structures that may have existed in the area. The site is located only 300 meters from the Shrine of Lady Ban Tranh, set in a landscape ideally suited for early spiritual and cultural architecture.
Despite centuries of natural change and shifting historical landscapes, Giếng Tiên has remained a faithful companion to generations of islanders, nourishing both their daily lives and their cultural memory.
In his monograph on Phu Quy, researcher Lê Hữu Lễ writes about Giếng Tiên:
“Speaking of the Fairy Well in Tay Hamlet (Long Hai), people recall early migrant groups who drifted to the island, discovered fresh water, and believed it to be ‘fairy water.’ That is why the well was named Giếng Tiên. Originally, the well was a natural pool of crystal-clear freshwater—you could see a needle dropped to the bottom. Today it has been fully built up with stone walls, overflowing during the rainy season and normally about 5–7 ‘thước’ deep.”
Visiting Giếng Tiên, one feels as if ancient whispers echo faintly from a thousand years away—the murmur of water rising from the well, the imagined laughter of Cham maidens drawing water under the moonlight, the scent of wild grass drifting on the wind, and the dreamlike vision of five celestial maidens bathing in days long past.
Local poetic verses capture this mythic beauty:
Returning to visit the ancient well,
Green grass remembers the first rains of the season.
Our island may never have had a king,
Yet it had a Princess—no land compares.
Here we stand, filled with pride,
The Princess’s well still remains today.
Lady Ban Tranh once built this place,
Her sacred water first flowed from this well.
Whoever comes to Phu Quy, this emerald isle,
Remember Princess Ban Tranh—stop by to visit.
The fairy maiden waves in welcome,
The Fairy Well endures through the ages.
Come seek the sacred water of Giếng Tiên,
Recall the old teachings of our ancestors.
Bathe, and your skin glows pink and fresh;
Drink, and its sweetness lingers unforgettable.
){kind=link}