Princess Anne unveils jubilee ancient tree table at Ely Cathedral

Princess Anne unveiled the ancient jubilee table at Ely Cathedral

The Princess Royal has officially unveiled a table made from a 5,000-year-old oak tree in honour of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee.

Princess Anne visited Ely Cathedral in Cambridgeshire earlier to unveil the 13m (43ft) table created from a black oak, found buried and preserved in a field in Norfolk, in 2012.

Specialists have spent 10 years crafting the piece of furniture.

The cathedral is the first venue to host the jubilee table.

The trunk of a giant Fenland black oak, or bog oak, was found buried in farmland at Methwold Hythe, near Downham Market, in 2012.

The trunk of a giant Fenland black oak, or bog oak, was found buried in farmland at Methwold Hythe, near Downham Market, in 2012

Thousands of years ago the East Anglian Fens was densely forested by large oak trees which, due to rising seas, fell into the silt of the flooded forest floor and were preserved in the peat.

Furniture specialists Adamson and Low, led the Fenland Black Oak Project, where a team of privately-funded carpenters created the table.

The Dean of Ely, the Very Reverend Mark Bonney, said the table had been "dedicated to HM The Queen and we feel very honoured to be the first venue to host it, in this her Platinum Jubilee year".

Princess Anne admiring the ancient table at a ceremony on Tuesday

Information boards will detail the history of black oak and highlight elements of the 10-year project including its commemoration to the Queen.

The table will be in the cathedral from 18 May until March 2023.