Scarborough's 4,000 year old resident on the move as museum plans major revamp

Gristhorpe Man, the star attraction of the Rotunda museum, has had to be transported to a controlled museum store to allow essential building works to take place.

The skeleton and coffin of the famous Bronze Age warrior chieftain has been away from the public eye since last September when a leak in the roof forced the Shell Gallery to close.

Four months on, the gallery is still shut as Scarborough Museum Trust is now planning a major revamp.

Plans to refurbish the gallery, which could include the development of new interactive exhibitions, will then go out to public consultation. This will be followed by another consultation to assess the technical delivery and costs of the project.

Simon Hedges, Creative Director of Scarborough Museum Trust said: "It's quite a long process and we want to do it properly so we're open to ideas from the community to see what people would like from their local museum."

The Shell Gallery is expected to re-open by the end of the year or the beginning of the next one.

Gristhorpe Man may be involved in more research before returning on display.