A piece of York's murky past emerged from the depths, when workers on the Ouse came across an old barrow in the river.

Staff from York Boat were working on a landing bay at King's Staith when they uncovered the wooden barrow.

Nothing is known about how the cart got in the river, or how old it is, but it is still in full working order.

The L-shaped structure has a single steel wheel and a frame of wooden slats with long handles. It is about seven foot long and - other than some mould on the wood - is in excellent condition.

Craig Price, one of the men who found the cart on Thursday, said it was the first time they had come across anything so unusual in the Ouse. He said bikes had been fished out of the river before, but never a barrow.

He said: "We thought it was a bike at first, but it turned out to be an old barrow. It looks like the kind of thing a horse would have towed.

"A few of us are working at King's Staith. We have been repairing a landing and replacing some of the wood and we stumbled upon it."

The cart has now been offered to York Castle Museum for public display.

Kathryn McClure of York Boat said: "We reckon it's quite old - maybe from the 1920s or older. It's still in good condition with just a bit of damp and mould round the edges. I think it would look good in the Castle Museum.

"We haul bits of bike out of the river quite a lot, but never anything like this."

Do you have any idea what the barrow is, what it was used for or where it came from? If so, please phone Lucy Stephens in the Evening Press newsroom on 01904 653051 extension 313, or you can email lucy.stephens@ycp.co.uk

Updated: 10:29 Tuesday, May 24, 2005