9th Apr, 2026 10:00
East Anglian, Antiques & Fine Art
999
The Red Barn Murder: Very rare and historic collection of first hand evidence relating to the infamous 1827 murder
The Red Barn Murder: Very rare and historic collection of first hand evidence relating to the infamous 1827 murder: The collection of documents housed within a book of the period, with marbled board ends and gilt titled to the spine 'TRIAL OF CORDER, WITH AUTOGRAPH DEFENCE AND LETTERS' relating directly to William Corder, including his own defence statement, which he delivered in court, the original document in his own hand, including his own edits and corrections, together with hand written notes which were handed by Corder to his council, also a letter from Corder to his mother, and from her to solicitors, a letter from his sister, and his wife (Mary Moore whom he married after the apparent disappearance of Maria Marten, and resided with in Brentford at the time of his arrest) and a letter dated May 22nd 1828 from Corder to his wife '..My life's loved companion...'. Although the full transcript of the trial including William Corder's speech was published by George Foster in 1828, the measured construction and edits in this original document provide a unique insight into the suspect's state of mind and his desperate attempted defence, written from the confines of Bury St Edmunds Gaol. One particular paragraph which he edited out of his speech is poignant when considering the many theories of his innocence which prevailed after his hanging -
'...shou’d you pause as to the verdict you wou’d pronounce on this case allow me to remind you before you decide, of the many unfortunate beings who have suffered ignominious deaths under circumstances which seemed to establish almost beyond the possibility of doubt their guilt, and yet, when too late, have been proved to have been entirely innocent, I mention amidst many similar cases, that of Richard Coleman who in 1748 suffered at Kingston innocently for the alleged murder of Sarah Green tho’ convicted upon positive evidence & whose children perished for want, because the world believed their father guilty. In 1751 two men named Welsh and Jones were tried and convicted for the same murder and they both declared at the place of execution that poor Coleman was entirely innocent, and the subsequent investigation had confirmed this declaration. I also am innocent & as an innocent man a fellow being I may claim the rights of an innocent man'
NB: The Red Barn Murder of 1827, which occurred in the tiny rural village of Polstead, Suffolk had all the traits of intrigue, sex and gothic horror which made it the biggest murder story of the era. Ballads and plays were written on the theme, Staffordshire models of the barn created and Polstead became a tourist destination, with an estimated 200,000 visitors in 1828 alone, much of the Red Barn and Maria Marten's tomb stone was eradicated entirely by trophy hunters.
Sold for £12,700
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Auction: East Anglian, Antiques & Fine Art, 9th Apr, 2026
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