HISTORIC treasures have been uncovered during restoration work at Maldon's Plume Library - one of the oldest public libraries in England.

The fascinating finds were made by builders as they lifted old floorboards and include:

- A fragment of masonry carved with a Romanesque chevron pattern that is very possibly a piece of the first church at the site - and therefore Norman

- A 15th or early 16th Century (Tudor) beam, perhaps reused from a church screen or some other piece of church furniture

-Two 1930s cigarette packets.

Not only this, but three historic books were found in the air gaps between two bookcases - fortunately in good condition. One of them is from the original Plume collection and dates back to 1671.

A grant of almost £68,000 was awarded by Historic England to safeguard the future of Thomas Plume's Library in February. The grant was for the repair of the Grade I listed building on the corner of Market Hill and the High Street that houses the precious collection of books and documents.

The Plume Library is housed in the upper floor of the building attached to the tower of the former Church of St Peter. It contains more than 8,000 volumes dating from the 16th and 17th centuries.

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The library was built on the site of the former church - of which only the 15th century west tower remains following the collapse of the church nave in around 1665 - by Dr Thomas Plume, who was born in the town in 1630.