SPRING has returned to the grounds of one of the region's stately homes, and with it a faithful copy of a long-lost statue.

The original statue, depicting Pluto's conquest of Proserpine, once stood in the grounds of Castle Howard. The estate's resident restorer, Michael Major, used archive evidence and similar examples elsewhere to make a copy. Yesterday it was placed on a plinth made for the original, which has been restored thanks to a grant from English Heritage.

Made from lead and weighing approximately two tonnes, the statue stands on the South Front, opposite the statue of Hercules and Antaeus which was put in place in 2001.

That statue was also the work of Mr Major.

In Roman mythology, Proserpine was the daughter of the earth goddess Ceres. Pluto, the god of the Underworld, fell in love with Proserpine and carried her off to make her his wife.

In her sadness, Ceres refused to let the plants grow, and everyone began to die of hunger.

As a result, Pluto allowed Proserpine to return to her mother for six months of the year. The time that Proserpine was with her mother became the summer, and when she went back to Pluto, winter returned.