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250 year old wallpaper uncovered at Woburn Abbey

Rare 18th century Chinese wallpaper uncovered in former bed chamber of the fourth Duke of Bedford at Woburn Abbey

The rare Chinese paper was used to decorate the bed chamber of the fourth Duke of Bedford at Woburn Abbey
The rare Chinese paper was used to decorate the bed chamber of the fourth Duke of Bedford at Woburn Abbey Credit: Photo: SWNS

Some of the earliest wallpaper used in Britain has been uncovered for the first time in nearly 250 years.

The rare 18th century Chinese paper was used to decorate the private bed chamber of the fourth Duke of Bedford at Woburn Abbey in Bedford, Beds.

He imported the luxury wallcovering from China but after his death in 1771 it was papered over and forgotten until the recent discovery of an invoice dated 1751.

The Duke's modern-day descendants began the painstaking task of stripping the room of centuries of wallpaper to see if the paper was underneath.

They were amazed to discover it was still intact after centuries' worth of wallpaper being placed over it.

The wall covering has now been put on public display by Louise Russell, the current Duchess of Bedford.

She said: "We all got unbelievable excited - because when we started off we didn't know how big a piece it would be.

"There are one or two other little fragments around the room but only small fragments. So we were jumping up and down with excitement really."

The fragment now forms part of an exhibition, 'Peeling Back The Years', which includes a reconstruction of what the original wall might have looked like.