THE centrepiece of a village tradition returned to its rightful home when a service was held to mark the rededication of the Gunnerside banner.

Similar to the traditional miners' banners of the Durham coalfields, but remarkable for the quality of its materials and design, the 8ft 6ins x 7ft banner is made of blue silk, and painted in oils on both sides, one with a dedication to the Band of Hope, the other to the Sunday school.

On the first Sunday of July each year, the Midsummer Festival is celebrated and until just after the Second World War, the following Monday was always a day of fun, beginning with a large parade through the village headed by the banner.

Families who had moved away from the village returned for these two days and many local people have childhood memories of taking part in the event, last held in the mid-Forties.

At least one earlier banner is known to have existed, but the present one was painted in 1913 by Thomas W Rutter. Born in Gunnerside in 1874, he moved to Liverpool with his family as a small boy, but always maintained his links with the area.

He studied at the Royal College of Art, in London, had five paintings hung at the Royal Academy and was known as a landscape painter in oils and watercolours.

He taught for a while at Burnley School of Art and then spent 19 years as chief assistant at the Northampton Art School, now part of Northampton University.

After its annual exposure to the elements and hanging for decades in the Methodist chapel, the banner was found to be in need of major restoration.

An appeal was launched and money for the project was raised from a combination of grants and many individual donations from people with Gunnerside links and fond memories.

Internationally-known textile conservator Caroline Rendell from Staindrop carried out the work, painstakingly removing the (very old) strips of sticky tape apparently holding the piece together, dying silk patches and conservation net to repair the delicate fabric, repainting and thoroughly cleaning the banner.

Although light damage has faded the silk from its original deep blue, the restoration work has brought out again the wonderful William Morris-style background, with its trellis of golden fruit, and the glory of the central panels.

As a finishing touch, the conservator's husband, Jimmy Paterson, designed and made a bracket, echoing the leaf motif from the banner itself; hinged to enable both sides of the banner to be displayed without further damage to the fabric