VIKING treasures are to go on display in York Minster's Undercroft with the opening of a new exhibition of items from the Jorvik Viking Centre.

The exhibition, Jorvik: Treasures & Belief, will feature personal finds from the Coppergate dig, including a highly-decorated barrel padlock and another locking mechanism, a stapled hasp featuring animal heads.

An item specially commissioned for the exhibition is a replica of the Middleton Cross, an ancient carved stone cross which sits in St Andrew’s Church in Middleton, Ryedale.

It has been carved by masons in the Minster’s stone yard to recreate what the cross would have looked like when it was first crafted, and it shows a Viking warrior in full armour alongside a 'monstrous beast,' said Sarah Maltby, Jorvik director of attractions.

Other artefacts illustrate the transition from the old Norse religions to Christianity, with the melding of the two faiths evidenced in precious items such as coins, she said.

The exhibition, entry for which is included within the Minster’s standard admission price, runs from next Monday until early 2017, when the artefacts will go to the Viking Centre as it re-opens following major repairs after the Boxing Day floods.

Meanwhile, a selection of costumes and props from the York Minster Mystery Plays are also going on display in a separate exhibition, The Mystery Plays: Under the Spotlight, which has opened in the Minster's East End.