NHER 27213 (Monument record) - Post medieval duck decoy

February 2005. Norfolk NMP.
A post medieval duck decoy is recorded at this approximate location (centred around TG 4740 1632) in a survey of the Norfolk decoys published in 1878 (S1). It lay on the margins of the northern extremity of Ormesby Broad, in a carr 'just behind' the house of Decoy Farm. Apparently it had not been worked since the beginning of the 19th century but the remains of five pipes were still visible (S1) and (S2).

The Hemsby decoy may be one of the oldest in the country, its lease dating to the time of James I (S3). These early decoys often consisted of pipes or channels dug from existing bodies of water (S3), and this type of construction may explain why the Hemsby decoy is not visible on aerial photographs of the area, as any surviving pipes are likely to be indistinguishable from non archaeological drainage features. Its former presence, however, is reflected in several decoy placenames both in the immediate vicinity and on the western side of the Broad (S4).
S. Tremlett (NMP), 25 February 2005.