Mosaic saved from demolition after 'immense effort'

The mosaics are more than 100 years old

Historical mosaics that were at risk of being lost after being discovered on a building site have been saved by a team of conservators with an hour to spare.

The coloured tiles depicting religious icons, which date back to 1905, were found during the demolition of a former Catholic school in Chorlton, Manchester.

Conservationists have safely removed the mosaics after a race against time to take them down within a week before demolition at the site continued.

Tracey Cartledge, who led the restoration, said the team were "exhausted but exhilarated" after spending days taking down the display.

The mosaics had been covered up by wooden panelling

The mosaics are now in storage ahead of further conservation work although there is not yet any decision on where the mosaics will end up.

Made from materials including Venetian glass, gold leaf and rare British made tiles from Jesse Rust, the mosaics depict Christian iconography.

They were uncovered by builders last week from behind wooden panels at the former Chorlton Convent High School for Girls.

The team managed to remove all the mosaic despite fears not all of it could be saved

They were covered up when the site was taken over by the Manchester Islamic High School for Girls around 1991 and so were missed by planners when permission was granted to build new housing on the site.

Conservations had until 14:00 BST on Sunday to remove the mosaics and Ms Cartledge said the work was completed about an hour before that deadline.

The team spent a week painstakingly removing the mosaic

Tracey Cartledge, who lives locally, said it involved "immense effort, exceptional teamwork and coordination" to complete the work.

She said: "The exquisite mosaic scheme, expertly crafted by local artisans in 1905, is now safe from demolition.

"The guardian angels, within the mosaic iconography, watched over it for 120 years.

"We've played our part in preserving this valuable heritage asset for many more years to come. We'd like to say a huge and heartfelt thank you to everybody who has helped, supported and encouraged us in this endeavour."