Once restoration is complete, the timbers – part of the largest medieval wooden structure in the region, after Lincoln Cathedral’s roof – could be put on display.

Timbers from three medieval bridges were found in Hemington Quarry in 1993 by a retired local GP, the late Chris Salisbury.

The County Council funded the University of Leicester Archaeological Services team to study and excavate the site. Sections of the 11th century bridge were so large that they had to be lifted by eight people.

Since the wet timbers were removed from the site, a painstaking conservation process has been taking place at Snibston Discovery Park, which involves immersing them in tanks of liquid sugar. The liquid sugar solution displaces the water in the water logged timbers and when the wood is dried the sugar stabilises the friable wood structure strengthening them and stopping them from flaking and crumbling.

Ernie White, Cabinet member for Community Services, said: “It’s amazing to think that timbers from a Norman bridge are being preserved with sugar - and that they could soon be on display to the public.

“I’d like to thank British Sugar for their generosity in supporting this project and for helping to ensure that future generations will be able to learn more about this fascinating find.”

Dr Julian Cooper, head of food science at British Sugar, said:

“This project has been a source of genuine pride for British Sugar. Our long association with the River Trent at Newark made it a privilege to be involved in the restoration of the Hemington Bridge, which once spanned the same river.

“Securing the viability of the bridge is testament to the natural preservative qualities of sugar. We have been able to use the expertise of Poole Museum staff and build on the expertise gained in the conservation of the Poole log boat, perfecting the sucrose impregnation method for use on what is the largest project of its type in Great Britain.

“Now we have reached the final stages of this 15 year conservation process, we congratulate the determination of those involved in safeguarding the bridge for generations to come.”

Lynden Cooper, from Leicester University, said: “The timbers are a rare testament to the engineering skills of the early medieval period and illustrate the importance of the road networks to the economy of the time. They also provide unique evidence of Saxo-Norman woodworking methods.”

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Note to editors:

1) How the process works:

• The sugar displaces the water in the timbers as they gradually dry out. As the sugar crystallises, it strengthens the timbers.

• If this process had not been used, the timbers could have warped and distorted as they dried out.

• The sugar solution has to be changed every few years, as water comes out of the timbers and dilutes it.

• The timbers will be immersed in a clean batch of liquid sugar for nine months and then dried under controlled conditions. It is estimated that they will be ready for display in two to three years.

• As well as providing the sugar, British Sugar has provided advice and testing facilities, to ensure the sugar solution stays at the optimum state for conservation.

• A similar method was used to preserve timbers from an Iron Age boat found in Poole in 1985. The boat is now on display in the Waterfront Museum, Poole, Dorset.

2) The Hemington bridges:

• A team of archaeologists, led by Susan Ripper and Lynden Cooper, found three medieval bridges – two timber and one stone. The oldest one, a Norman example from 1097, was exceptionally well preserved and is now being conserved at Snibston.

• The bridge was made up of two diamond-shaped pier bases, made from a pair of massive wooden boxes. In the deepest part of the river, the bridge was supported by an immense timber trestle.

• Susan Ripper and Lynden Cooper are producing a Leicester University publication, “The Hemington Bridges Project”, later this year.

For more information please contact:

Sophie Hughes - Fleishman-Hillard - 0207 395 7104 - 07932 635 784 - sophie.hughes@fleishmaneurope.com