A MAJOR exhibition featuring the work of the man known as the "undisputed Michelangelo of wood" is to be held in the region.

Last year Fairfax House in York was able to save a Grinling Gibbons masterwork, the King David Panel, from being exported after a major fund-raising campaign.

To celebrate that it is mounting a major new exhibition "The Genius of Grinling Gibbons: From Journeyman to King’s Carver" - exploring the life, work and genius of one of Britain’s greatest artists, sculptors and craftsmen.

It opens on April 14 - nearly 370 years to the day of Gibbons’ birthday and the 350th anniversary of his arrival in York, where he worked briefly as a journeyman.

As well as the King David Panel it will also feature one of Gibbons' most iconic pieces, a "lace" cravat carved from limewood and worn in 1769 by Horace Walpole to fool French, Spanish and Portuguese visitors who believed it was the dress of an English country gentleman.

House director, Hannah Phillip said: "Fairfax House holds very dear its responsibilities as the custodian of this piece of national history. The King David panel has been tucked away in private collections all through its life and we are determined this shall no longer be the case."