Died 716; feast day in Norwich and Roscarrock is August 30. A
15th-century "vita" tells us that Saint Decuman was a Welsh monk from
Rhoscrowther (Llandegyman), Pembrokeshire (Dyfed), who settled as a
hermit near Dunster in Somersetshire, where he was beheaded by an
assassin while in prayer. The legend continues that he carried his own
head to a nearby well. He appears to have had a well-established cultus
in Cornwall, Wales, and Somerset, where there are dedications in his
honour. He is the patron of Watchet and Saint Decumans in Somerset,
England
(
Benedictines,
Farmer).
In art, Saint Decuman is portrayed as
hermit holding a processional cross
(
Roeder).