A SCULPTURE that survived Henry VIII’s suppression of monasteries has been digitally recreated and gone on display for the first time at Rievaulx Abbey.

The recreation allows visitors to see the lost detail and intricacies of the scene from a panel that is too badly eroded to see otherwise. Other highlights of the exhibition include a loan of a service book with hand-illuminated depictions of the Annunciation.

Dr Michael Carter, senior historian at English Heritage, said: “The Annunciation sculpture at Rievaulx is a rare and important survival.

“It provides valuable evidence of life and belief at the abbey during its final flowering in the early 1500s.

“The sculpture’s suffered over the centuries but the use of the latest technology has helped bring this medieval sculpture back to life.”