MUSEUM visitors were given the chance to try their hands at calligraphy over the weekend.

The Museum of Hartlepool was giving people the chance to make bookmarks, as part of an event that coincided with them being allowed to handle a copy of one the world's greatest cultural treasures.

As part of a tour of the North-East, a facsimile of the Lindisfarne Gospels is currently on view at the museum.

The Lindisfarne Gospels were created in the early 700s on the island of Lindisfarne, and are thought to be the work of one man, Eadfrith, Bishop of Lindisfarne.

He laboured on their creation for more than six years, producing one of the most remarkable religious works of art.

The original gospels are on permanent display, free of charge, at the British Library, in London, where visitors from around the world flock to see them.

The exhibition is a collaboration between the British Library and the North-East Museums, Libraries and Archives Council, which hopes the facsimile will give people greater access to the gospels.

It will be on display until December 7. The museum is open seven days a week, from 10am to 5pm, and entry is free.

Published: 17/11/2003