Statue of Samson from Norwich nightspot back on display

Museum curator Jenny Caynes said Samson's intricate features including his "beautiful long curls" could now be seen following the four-year restoration

A 17th Century statue of Samson, which stood at the doors of a nightclub, has gone on display at a museum after having 60 layers of paint removed.

The oak figure has been put on show at the Museum of Norwich, having flanked the entrance of a house built in 1657 in the city's Tombland.

A crowdfunding campaign raised £15,000 in 2018 for the display.

Curator Jenny Caynes said the carving had "undergone an amazing transformation".

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The restoration has taken four years and Samson is now in an environmentally-controlled glass case, having survived two world wars, a fire and nightclubbers' antics when he stood alongside his 129-year-old "doorman" partner Hercules.

Thick layers of white paint have been stripped back to reveal the carvings

Ms Caynes said Samson, a tribute to the Biblical strongman who lost his strength when his long hair was cut, had been carved out of a single oak tree trunk.

"They were these big white featureless people - we all loved them - but Samson has had his paint taken off," she said.

"At 350 years old, I think he has weathered pretty well - we can all see features, his beautiful long curls, with Samson's strength in his hair.

"The detail of his moustache and his eyes - we think he's rather wonderful."

The figures were kept in a courtyard from 1789 and returned to the front door in 1890

Samson and Hercules House was converted into a restaurant and flats in 2003, with fibreglass figures now standing guard

A touchscreen display at the museum provides the history of Samson and Hercules House, which was owned by the city's mayor Christopher Jay, who erected the statues.

The building became a dancehall in 1934 and remained a nightspot - changing its name to Ritzy's in 1983 - until 2003.

Hercules, a tribute to the mythological Greek strongman, was replaced by a copy in 1890, but by the 1990s both statues had decayed and were removed, with fibreglass versions installed instead.

The restoration project has been nominated for a heritage award

Samson and Hercules House was turned into a dance hall in 1934 - with the dancefloor covering a swimming pool

Ms Caynes said the restoration by London's Plowden & Smith had been shortlisted for a top heritage award for its "unusual and unique story".

The statue features in the BBC Civilisations project.