The Republic of Heaven

It bothered me that when I was taking photos of HDM-related sites in Oxford in May that I didn't make a note of the inscription on the bronze plaque on Lyra's bench - well Will's bench actually as it's in our world.

All is not lost, however. I blew up the original scan of my picture of the bench and could read it quite clearly. It says

IN MEMORY OF

JANE TOMKINSON

AND

MARY MONTEATH

Perhaps we should recognise these ladies as posthumous honorary sraffies. That'll give them something to tell the harpies!

Or we could replace the label and dedicate the bench to Will and Lyra!

Hehe. Road trip!

does anyone know who tomkinson and monteath were? were they special? or did they have rich friends who decided to donate a bench in their dead friends' names?

I Googled them and didn't see anything to suggest why they'd have a bench.

does anyone know who tomkinson and monteath were? were they special? or did they have rich friends who decided to donate a bench in their dead friends' names?

They are more likely to have had friends or family of reasonable means. They may have donated the bench, or the bench may have been there anyway and they got the plaque in return for a donation to the Botanic Garden.

The bench may have been a favourite spot for the ladies. I imagine that they were Friends of the Botanic Garden, people who pay an annual subscription and get in without paying for the day ticket (GBP 2.50 by the way). This particular bench is a bit of an oddity in its location, under a tree on its not-quite island by the stream. All the other benches are ranged along the main paths.

he he.. enitharmon, i like your avatar.

he he.. enitharmon, i like your avatar.

And they say C is short for Catastrophe...

Heck, it'd be weird if one day someone came up and carved "Lyra + Will" into one of the trees next to their bench....and a Sraffie like us---or Philip Pullman himself!---chanced to come across it.

I think somebody already has!

Heck, it'd be weird if one day someone came up and carved "Lyra + Will" into one of the trees next to their bench....and a Sraffie like us---or Philip Pullman himself!---chanced to come across it.

I think somebody already has!

Wouldn't it be nice if the UK arm of BTTS could put up a semi-official plaque nearby, commemorating the Bench and its significance.

Something similar has already been done for Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson. 221b has a plaque and so does the lab in St Barts Hospital where they first met. Of course, SH and JW were real people .

Heck, it'd be weird if one day someone came up and carved "Lyra + Will" into one of the trees next to their bench....and a Sraffie like us---or Philip Pullman himself!---chanced to come across it.

I think somebody already has!

Wouldn't it be nice if the UK arm of BTTS could put up a semi-official plaque nearby, commemorating the Bench and its significance.

Seriously - I would chip in to that. We could have a little ceremony next June. On the 24th, dammit!

Heck, it'd be weird if one day someone came up and carved "Lyra + Will" into one of the trees next to their bench....and a Sraffie like us---or Philip Pullman himself!---chanced to come across it.

I think somebody already has!

Wouldn't it be nice if the UK arm of BTTS could put up a semi-official plaque nearby, commemorating the Bench and its significance.

Seriously - I would chip in to that. We could have a little ceremony next June. On the 24th, dammit!

So would I, though I wouldn't be able to attend. Whom would we have to gain permission from? Could PP get involved?

Heck, it'd be weird if one day someone came up and carved "Lyra + Will" into one of the trees next to their bench....and a Sraffie like us---or Philip Pullman himself!---chanced to come across it.

I think somebody already has!

Wouldn't it be nice if the UK arm of BTTS could put up a semi-official plaque nearby, commemorating the Bench and its significance.

Seriously - I would chip in to that. We could have a little ceremony next June. On the 24th, dammit!

So would I, though I wouldn't be able to attend. Whom would we have to gain permission from? Could PP get involved?

It would be a courtesy, and it would be a great pleasure if he would. Well I'm up for it - anybody else?

Im up for it too. I will be learning to drive shortly, and the M40 is a fun motorway to drive down. I could get to Oxford (if I get hold of a car, that is...).

same, then wander around the city.

Just be careful not to look too odd, you might get end up in a small room with padded walls. Hey! That could fun too!

Of course, if we did dedicate (or re-dedicate it, as the case may be) the bench to Will and Lyra (an excellent idea, I'm all for it, although I may never get to see it ), someone would have to dedicate that place in the train station to Harry Potter, unless they already have, and some other place to some other famous book hero, and so on and so forth, which could get out of hand after awhile. But I think we should do it anyway. OooH! We could also find the place where Will finds the window under the hornbeam trees in TSK and make a little monument there, since the bench is kinda already taken.

We could also find the place where Will finds the window under the hornbeam trees in TSK and make a little monument there, since the bench is kinda already taken.

We *know* where that is - there's a photo on this site! But you wouldn't want the memorial plaque on the Oxford Ring Road - believe me!

Indeed, not the most idyllic of places...

Im up for it too. I will be learning to drive shortly, and the M40 is a fun motorway to drive down. I could get to Oxford (if I get hold of a car, that is...).

You'd get a bit wet if you were driving from LA