AN exhibition of treasures is opening in St Cuthbert's Church, Darlington, on Tuesday, May 21 to highlight some of its amazing artefacts.

The church is one of 18 in Durham and Northumbria which have been chosen to host Travelling Treasures, an National Lottery funded exhibition.

"Our treasures include a cheeky naked man wearing only his boots, our 352 million year old Paleozoic sea creatures, Thunderbird 3 and the oldest carving of Henry III in any parish church in England," says Gill Tiffin, who is helping to organise the exhibition.

"St Cuthbert’s really is the Jewel in the Crown of Darlington and the only Grade One listed building in the town centre, and yet many of those who live and work nearby haven’t yet paid a visit. It’s a very special place which, down the centuries, has enabled countless people to draw near to God. Evidence of a Saxon church lies within the west walls of the present church, so the church site has stood to witness the development of Darlington from an Anglo-Saxon settlement to the present day."

The Travelling Treasures exhibition is in Darlington for a fortnight, and during that time the church will be open every day from 11am to 1pm and 2pm to 4pm.