Life of Christ told in Birmingham Cathedral's restored stained glass

Work to restore and clean the stained-glass windows at Birmingham Cathedral has taken 500 days

Stained-glass windows creating scenes from the life of Christ have been described as a city's "most spectacular pieces of art" following their restoration.

The four scenes at Birmingham Cathedral are by renowned 19th Century artists Edward Burne-Jones and William Morris.

Pictures of the restored work have been shared ahead of the official unveiling.

Over 500 days of cleaning and repairs went into the project and more than 20 panels were removed and reinstalled.

More than 3,000 members of the public have taken advantage of a scaffolding tour for a close-up view.

The windows, which have also had their protective grilles replaced, are due to be unveiled at 10:00 GMT.

The windows were designed by Birmingham-born artist Edward Burne-Jones

The new grilles are also designed to improve the view of the windows from the outside.

At the east end of the cathedral, visitors can see three of the windows depicting the birth of Jesus in The Nativity, Christ's return to heaven in The Ascension, and reflect on the scene of his death in The Crucifixion.

The Ascension depicted in the window has undergone a thorough clean, the cathedral has said

Under the tower at the west end of the cathedral, a fourth window shows the world's final days in The Last Judgement. 

A date for the project's final completion is not yet set but is expected to be in the run up to Christmas.

Anna Pitt, CEO at the cathedral, said: "Over 3,000 people have experienced the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity of getting onto our scaffolding and seeing our windows up close during their conservation. 

The Bitbox glass has been uncovered after being restored at the east end of the cathedral

More than 20 panels were removed from the windows to undergo specialist restoration

"Around a third of visitors on our tours had never been into the cathedral before, which really shows how the windows can capture the imagination of so many new people."Events celebrating the windows and their conservation will be ongoing until summer next year.

Newly conserved window before the grilles were installed

The windows show four well-known scenes from the life of Christ

Members of the public were welcomed into the cathedral to see the restoration work

Jesus from The Last Judgement window was one of the panels that was removed in order to be restored

Expert conservators, from Holy Well Glass, carried out the task of cleaning and repairing the glass