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Knole Park visit
Liveryman, Graham Marley, has worked for many years on the restoration of one of England’s largest country houses, Knole Park, and was instrumental in organising a Company visit
Liverymen and guests were privileged to visit this grand house dating back to the mid 15th. Century on a hot summer day. Following coffee on arrival we attended an introductory illustrated talk by the Curator, Emma Slocombe. Her enthusiasm as she relayed anecdotes of peeling back 600 years of history was plain to see
Next we visited the state-of-the-art conservation studio housed in a sympathetically restored medieval barn and were able to meet a number of highly skilled conservators working on objects from the house’s magnificent collection. The key object was the famous Knole Settee dating from the mid 17th. Century and much copied since. A lively discussion with conservators highlighted the sensitivities around the merits of conservation versus restoration
Following lunch Graham led the party through the open showrooms to view some of the collection and get glimpses at some of the restoration work being carried out in other parts of the building
We were then free to visit other public areas such as the Gatehouse Tower where Eddy Sackville-West, reluctant heir to the dynasty which had owned Knole from 1603, resided and entertained members of the Bloomsbury set in the 1930s. From the top of the Tower there was a superb view over the 1000 acres of deer park still owned by the Sackville family who continue to reside in part of the house
A subsequent walk around the gardens sparked ideas for our own modest plots!
At the end of the day we reflected over tea how lucky we were to enjoy these private visits and gain insights from local specialists
Some of the party then continued the day at a nearby pub where further thoughts from Graham and a convivial supper were enjoyed