AN 18th Century watercolour was brought to life at the launch of a city's latest walking trail.

A couple in Georgian costume strolled along New Walk, a tree-lined avenue by the River Ouse, in York, created in the 1730s.

Now, the Friends of New Walk, with the First Stop York tourism partnership, have recreated the riverside trail as part of a campaign to encourage the discovery of the city on foot.

The costumed couple recreated the scene of an 18th Century painting, Prospect Of A Noble Terras Walk, by Nathaniel Drake, which hangs in the city's Merchant Adventurers' Hall.

The picture shows the glamour of York in its heyday as the first-choice destination for the fashion-conscious outside London, when walking for pleasure first came into fashion.

Tony Bennett, chairman of First Stop York, said: "With the production of the new trail we're now hoping to attract 21st Century Londoners to walk the route much favoured by their Georgian ancestors."

Landmarks of New Walk include St George's Field, where the ghost of highwayman Dick Turpin is said to have been spotted, and Pikeing Well, used by Lady Mary Wortley-Montagu.

Patrick Ottaway, Friends of New Walk chairman, said: "We're delighted that today's visitors and locals will now have the opportunity to learn more about the history of one of the oldest Georgian promenades in the country."