INTEREST is mounting as a replica of a symbol of a town's history went on public display yesterday.

The Lindisfarne Gospels spent 110-years at Chester-le-Street Parish Church before being carried with the remains of St Cuthbert, by monks fleeing the Vikings, to the site of what became Durham Cathedral, in 995AD.

During the period in Chester-le-Street, the 8th Century manuscript - produced by monks on Holy Island - were translated into Anglo-Saxon English.

A fundraising drive is under way to pay for a replica copy of the gospels to be permanently displayed at the parish church of St Mary's and St Cuthbert's.

In the meantime, the British Library, where the original gospels remain in the permanent collection, has sent a facsimile copy to be displayed in Chester-le-Street Library.

The replica forms the centrepiece of an exhibition which opened yesterday.

Library group manager Helen Thompson said it immediately appeared to capture the imagination of library users.

"I thought it would be slow at first, and then pick up, but it was quite busy with visitors from the word 'go'., she said.

"Visitors can turn the pages themselves, which is quite a novelty. Because they're like the original vellum it's like looking through the real thing."

The exhibition was opened by Patrick Conway, Durham County Council's director of culture and leisure services.

It will remain on show in the exhibition room at Station Road library until June 4.

Author Michelle Brown, the curator of the gospels and other ancient manuscripts at the British Library, will give a talk, The Lindisfarne Gospels: Making and Meaning, at the library, on Friday, May 28, at 6pm. She will also be available for book signings afterwards.

Free tickets can be obtained from the library, on 0191-388 2015.