A LARGE and distinctively different piece of Evesham's heritage is being restored after 100 years.

Sixteen feet of a whale's jawbone that has been in Workman Gardens since 1906 is undergoing some extensive restoration work.

The story goes that in 1819 Captain Orton sailed from Hull on the ship Andrew Marvel bound for the Arctic.

On the same ship was Mr Stanton from Evesham and he brought back a jawbone from a bowhead whale as a gift to leading town figure Dr Cooper.

The jawbone was made into an archway for Dr Cooper, who lived in the mansion house that it now the Evesham Hotel. It stayed at his home until it was presented to the council and erected in Workman Gardens in 1906.

Wychavon District Council Parks Officer Lynn Stevens said: "The whale-bone has become an interesting part of Evesham's heritage."