Log burner v old traditional fireplace in old house?

Any advice from interior designers or renovators please!! I've got a 400 yrs old house. In the living room there is a very old black fireplace, it's got a black canopy and a fancy little black surround bit that patterned. The mantelpiece is marble but in a bad state although we're keeping it. The fireback and chimney needs work, ie re-build and chimney insert. We really fancy a log burner and the log burner man said we could take off the black canopy and leave the fancy trim bit that surrounds it and stand the log burner in front on some old quarry tiles we have. The tiles that surround the fire back are ancient, a pear pattern, but most of them are missing or damaged, all that bit would be ripped out and replaced with a flat back steel piece for the log burner to stand in front of. if I take off the canopy I'll store it in the Attic for future generations to put back if need be..... I'm really in a dilemma about the whole thing, I don't know which way to go. A log burner would be better as the fire sometimes blows back and it's hard work looking after a real fire. What do you think? should I renovate old fireplace or replace with log burner?