Layered Heritage
Inspired by the ‘Ghost Stories of an Antiquary’, by M. R.
James this blog reflects on our layered heritage. In M.R. James story ‘The Picture’
he describes a mezzotint of a house with a figure in front of it which on a
second glance the door has opened, and the figure is gone! James was inspired
by his locality of Suffolk and Norfolk a place that has at the latest count 145
lost country houses.[1]
The house that this story is said to be inspired by was Livermere Hall in Great
Livermere in Suffolk.[2]
The site itself has a history stretching back to the 17c.
The hall itself was built within Livermere Park.[3]
The building of the park itself caused the removal of a whole village, now
known as the deserted village of Little Livermere viewable as dark patches on
ariel photographs.[4]
‘The original
house was called Broom Hall and belonged to the Coke family in the late C17 -
the heir to the estate, Arundell Coke of Bury St Edmunds was hanged for the
attempted murder of his brother-in-law in 1722.’[5]
The Park was sold in 1919. The Hall was demolished in 1923. The
reason for demolition is given as surplus to requirements as a secondary seat
some of the chimney’s pieces were transferred to Shrublands Hall.
The above paragraphs illustrate that in this small pocket of
the UK there are several layers of heritage built upon each other that can be
mused over by writers such as M.R.James and combined to be the basis of great
stories. No place can be or should be associated with just one story there are
many stories that can come from the same site. Interpretations can be developed
in many directions based on the local communities. The importance of which
heritage is used as the basis of the interpretation of a site depends on what
is important in the ‘now’. Curatorial choice or historical accident determines
what is visible. Recent unearthing of the slave trade links of some heritage
sites is an example of this.
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