A RELIC of Newcastle's engineering past is to join a collection at Beamish.

A steam turbo-generator has been donated to the Discovery Museum in Newcastle by Northumbria University's School of Engineering and Technology.

It was bought by the university - then Rutherford College - in 1954 to teach students about energy production. The college tried to sell electricity produced by the turbine to the Newcastle Electricity Company.

The turbine, built by Parsons, was destined for the scrap heap but now it will go on display as a piece of classic engineering from the 1950s.

The relic will not go on display immediately, but will be looked after by the Regional Museums Store, at Beamish Museum, where visitors will be able to see it on regular open days. The store houses much of the region's industrial heritage, including railway, road and farm vehicles.