Mazes and Labyrinths: A General Account of Their History and DevelopmentMatthews, W. H.
History
Mazes and Labyrinths: A General Account of Their History and Development
Matthews, W. H.
Labyrinths; Maze gardens
There is a turf labyrinth of a design similar to that at Alkborough
in a secluded romantic spot on land forming part of the estate of the
Hulse family, to the rear of their beautiful country seat, Breamore
House, Hants. It is known as the Mizmaze, and consists of a grassy
path 3 ft. in width, the overall diameter being 87 ft. The "goal" in
the centre is 18 ft. in diameter, and forms a low mound. Every curved
portion of the path is slightly inclined towards the centre of the
maze, as if to afford a firmer footing to runners. When the writer
visited it in July 1920 the grooves were rather overgrown, but the maze
receives periodical attention from its owners, and is in no present
danger of becoming obliterated. It lies in that sparsely populated
corner of Hampshire which protrudes into Wiltshire, between Salisbury
and Cranborne Chase, and is somewhat difficult to discover without
directions, as it is on a hilltop, and is surrounded by a thick copse,
with many other wooded hilltops in the neighbourhood. In the few
references that have been made to it by writers, it has been variously
described as being situated at Breamore, at Rockbourne, Hants, and
at Wickdown Hill, Wilts. It is remote from the villages, but is best
approached from Breamore (pronounced _Bremmer_ or _Brimmer_), which is
on the main road from Fordingbridge to Salisbury. From this village to
Breamore House is a pleasant twenty-minutes' walk, and thence through
the beautifully wooded and gently rolling grounds of the estate to
the Mizmaze, a delightful half-hour's stroll. It is advisable to seek
precise directions before setting out, because the path through the
woods disappears after a while in a meadow, and the copse in which the
maze is embedded appears at first impenetrable, having a narrow opening
on one side only, on the side remote from the direction of approach.
A local tradition says that a man could run from the maze to Gallows
Hill, more than half a mile distant, and back again, while another ran
round the maze.
A charming little sketch of this maze, by Heywood Sumner, accompanies a
reference in Williams-Freeman's "Field Archaeology in Hants."
[Illustration: Fig. 56. Labyrinths on Tiles, Toussaints Abbey,
Châlons-sur-Marne. (Amé)
(_see page 65_)]
[Illustration: Fig. 60. Turf Labyrinth at Wing, Rutland. (Photo, W. J.
Stocks. By permission of Rev. E. A. Irons)]
Near Wing, in Rutland, a few miles to the north-east of Uppingham,
there is preserved a maze of very similar design (Fig. 60). It is
maintained in good condition and is still the object of periodical
visits by the village folk on certain holidays. Just to the south of it
is a flat-topped bowl-shaped tumulus, over 70 ft. in diameter and 4
ft. high. It may be that the frequent association of turf mazes with
ancient earthworks of various kinds is something more than accidental,
but we do not seem to have sufficient evidence to establish a necessary
connection between the two things.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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