A NORTH-EAST church is in line for a cash windfall after workers uncovered buried treasure in the churchyard.

Experts from the British Museum have compared the significance of the 7th Century pendant found in Middlesbrough with that of the famous pectoral cross once worn by St Cuthbert.

The gold pendant - with an inlaid garnet - was found in the grounds of St Peter and St Paul's Church, in Stainton, near Middlesbrough, during excavation work.

Parishioners had been waiting more than three years for a treasure trove hearing to take place to determine the future of the ancient item, dubbed the Stainton pendant by experts.

Yesterday, Teesside Coroner Michael Sheffield ruled that, under the 1996 Treasure Act, the find was treasure and as such should become the property of the Crown.

He also said no one had a right to the pendant or a prior interest. The outcome means that the pendant will be delivered to the British Museum, where an independent committee will decide its worth.

It is expected to ask Middlesbrough's Dorman Museum, which wants to display the pendant, to meet its value and offer the money as a reward to the church.

The Reverend John Ford, priest in charge at St Peter and St Paul's, which is thought to date from before the Norman Conquest, said: "While we would like the pendant to be displayed at a local museum, we obviously did not want to forgo any financial reward as it could be used to maintain the church for future generations."

The hearing heard how it was discovered by David Graham, an archaeologist at the University of Durham, who was keeping a watching brief while building work at the church was carried out in March 2001.

Professor Rosemary Cramp, Professor Emeritus in the department of archaeology at Durham University, said the pendant showed a high degree of craftsmanship and was likely to be part of a necklace.

She said that finds of gold and garnet jewellery were rare in the North-East and likened it to the Durham Cuthbert cross, a copy of which is used in official ceremonies at Durham Cathedral.

The pectoral cross, to be worn round the neck, is thought to have belonged to one of Christianity's most influential figures, St Cuthbert, whose remains are interred at the cathedral.

The newly-found pendant, featuring a garnet set on a bed of hatched gold foil with a filigree surround, is 15mm long, 12mm wide and 2mm thick.

Kenneth Sedman, senior curator at the Dorman Museum, said the pendant would prove to be a star exhibit.

He said the museum would be seeking grants to pay for the pendant and hoped it could be on display within a matter of months.

He said: "It would be of great interest and we would, of course, like to have it available for display purposes.

"I would not, though, like to second guess the valuation which could be put on this."